Description
This textbook on the emerging field of development evaluations is intended for policymakers, researchers and students who need to provide reliable information on the effectiveness of government and organizational policies in such areas as poverty alleviation, the effects of globalization on the poor, structural inequalities in financial systems and policy response to climate change. Imas and Rist are advisors in the Independent Evaluation Group of The World Bank, and they provide cast studies, data collection strategies and other activities that will help readers to design, prepare and conduct effective development evaluations. A section is also devoted to leadership issues in development evaluations such as establishing ethical research methods, overseeing an evaluation and presenting the results. Annotation ©2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
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'The Road to Results: Designing and Conducting Effective Development Evaluations' presents concepts and procedures for evaluation in a development context. It provides procedures and examples on how to set up a monitoring and evaluation system, how to conduct participatory evaluations and do social mapping, and how to construct a “rigorous” quasi-experimental design to answer an impact question.The text begins with the context of development evaluation and how it arrived where it is today. It then discusses current issues driving development evaluation, such as the Millennium Development Goals and the move from simple project evaluations to the broader understandings of complex evaluations. The topics of implementing 'Results-based Measurement and Evaluation' and constructing a 'Theory of Change' are emphasized throughout the text. Next, the authors take the reader down 'the road to results,' presenting procedures for evaluating projects, programs, and policies by using a 'Design Matrix' to help map the process. This road includes: determining the overall approach, formulating questions, selecting designs, developing data collection instruments, choosing a sampling strategy, and planning data analysis for qualitative, quantitative, and mixed method evaluations. The book also includes discussions on conducting complex evaluations, how to manage evaluations, how to present results, and ethical behavior--including principles, standards, and guidelines. The final chapter discusses the future of development evaluation. This comprehensive text is an essential tool for those involved in development evaluation.
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