Impact Evaluation

The second edition of the Impact Evaluation in Practice handbook is a comprehensive and accessible introduction to impact evaluation for policy makers and development practitioners. First published in 2011, it has been used widely across the development and academic communities. The book incorporates real-world examples to present practical guidelines for designing and implementing impact evaluations. Readers will gain an understanding of impact evaluations and the best ways to use them to design evidence-based policies and programs. The updated version covers the newest techniques for evaluating programs and includes state-of-the-art implementation advice, as well as an expanded set of examples and case studies that draw on recent development challenges. It also includes new material on research ethics and partnerships to conduct impact evaluation. The handbook is divided into four sections: Part One discusses what to evaluate and why; Part Two presents the main impact evaluation methods; Part Three addresses how to manage impact evaluations; Part Four reviews impact evaluation sampling and data collection. Case studies illustrate different applications of impact evaluations. The book links to complementary instructional material available online, including an applied case as well as questions and answers. The updated second edition will be a valuable resource for the international development community, universities, and policy makers looking to build better evidence around what works in development.

This handbook provide a non-technical introduction to impact evaluations, including ?Why Evaluate? in Chapter 1, ?How to Evaluate? in Chapter 2 and ?How to Implement Impact Evaluations? in Chapter 3. These elements are the basic ?tools? needed in order to successfully carry out an impact evaluation.

Public programs are designed to reach certain goals and beneficiaries. Methods to understand whether such programs actually work, as well as the level and nature of impacts on intended beneficiaries, are main themes of this book.

Encompasses the main concepts and approaches of quantitative impact evaluations, used to consider the effectiveness of programmes, policies, projects or interventions. This textbook for economics graduate courses can also serve as a manual for professionals in research institutes, governments, and international organizations.

In the light of better and more detailed administrative databases, this open access book provides statistical tools for evaluating the effects of public policies advocated by governments and public institutions. Experts from academia, national statistics offices and various research centers present modern econometric methods for an efficient data-driven policy evaluation and monitoring, assess the causal effects of policy measures and report on best practices of successful data management and usage. Topics include data confidentiality, data linkage, and national practices in policy areas such as public health, education and employment. It offers scholars as well as practitioners from public administrations, consultancy firms and nongovernmental organizations insights into counterfactual impact evaluation methods and the potential of data-based policy and program evaluation.

Impact evaluation is an empirical approach to estimating the causal effects of interventions, in terms of both magnitude and statistical significance. Expanded use of impact evaluation techniques is critical to rigorously derive knowledge from development operations and for development investments and policies to become more evidence-based and effective. To help backstop more use of impact evaluation approaches, this book introduces core concepts, methods, and considerations for planning, designing, managing, and implementing impact evaluation, supplemented by examples. The topics covered range from impact evaluation purposes to basic principles, specific methodologies, and guidance on field implementation. It has materials for a range of audiences, from those who are interested in understanding evidence on "what works" in development, to those who will contribute to expanding the evidence base as applied researchers.

This book considers the process of impact assessment and shows how and why it needs to be integrated into all stages of development programmes. In-depth case studies are included and show a variety of approaches.

A work summarizing the pioneering approach of the author to public-interest decision-taking in the field of urban & regional planning. This book is aimed at students, researchers and professionals in planning.

This book offers an empirical analysis of how academic peer review panels mediate the traditionally non-academic criterion of societal impact. The UK’s 2014 Research Excellence Framework (REF2014) for the first time included an “Impact” criterion that considered how research had influenced society, beyond academia. Using a series of interviews with REF2014 Main Panel A evaluators, the book explores how a dominant definition of Impact was constructed within panels and how this led to the development of strategies around valuing it as an ambiguous object. By doing so, Derrick brings a unique perspective to Impact that is currently overlooked in the dominant Impact evaluation discourse. Through examining the evaluation procedure as a dynamic process it is argued that the best models, strategies and insights for Impact evaluation are those constructed in practice, within peer review groups. By exploring the legitimacy of peer review as a tool to assess the societal impact of research, Derrick states that the future for Impact evaluation is not to seek alternative tools where peer review seemingly fails, but instead to highlight ways in which peer review panels can work smarter. The book will be essential reading for students, academics and policy-makers working in Education, as well as researchers interested in peer review processes and the research evaluation frameworks and audit exercises globally.