Qualitative Research: An Introduction to Methods and Designs

Summary

In these challenging economic times, with even more emphasis placed on accountability and efficiency, program evaluation continues to grow as a profession. Some become evaluators by accident (as their jobs require more data collection and analysis); others intentionally study to develop the knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary to produce high-quality evaluations for program stakeholders, funders, and the general public to use to make informed decisions.

Similar to case studies, evaluations systematically scrutinize programs, products, personnel, materials, or policies; however, evaluations must also include judgments of value, merit, or worth. There is no single methodology or approach used for evaluations; evaluators instead ...