Qualitative Research: An Introduction to Methods and Designs

Evaluation Use

In too many instances, all the hard work and insightful analyses done by evaluators end up in a report that is filed away, never to see the light of day again. To avoid this wasteful use of time and resources, evaluators should clarify up front the intended uses of an evaluation by its intended users. Working in collaboration with the stakeholders in the program to determine the most useful evaluation questions to be answered, followed by actively encouraging these stakeholders to participate throughout the evaluation process with design, data collection, analysis, and interpretation, as appropriate, will promote use of the evaluation findings.

In general terms, there are three primary uses or purposes for evaluation findings (Patton, ...