Evaluative Research Methods: Managing the Complexities of Judgement in the Field

This book is written for research students and their supervisors, for 'program evaluators', and for those researchers who don't call themselves evaluators, but whose research is evaluative. It is aimed, this is to say, at those whose research involves judgment - of policies, practices or organization. judgment of their value, merit or their appropriateness. The involvement of judgment changes the nature of any research and makes particular demands on the researcher in terms of choice and use of method, ethics, political relationships and even emotional capabilities. There are many methodological text-books and models to support the researcher to meet such challenges. This is not one of those. Rather than teach a methodology or propose a model, this book helps you to think methodologically - i.e. to solve methodological, political, emotional issues as they arise, using your own judgment and your own resources. There are no blueprints for dealing with the ethics and the politics of evaluative research, there is only your ability to manage complexity and unpredictability. This book supports you in developing just that. Since this is an intellectual challenge the book offers both theory and method combined, and is laced with practical examples.