By: Colin Palfrey, Paul Thomas, Ceri Phillips

Paperback

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Evaluation research findings should be a key element of the policy making process, yet in reality they are often disregarded. This valuable book examines the development of evaluation and its impact on public policy by analysing evaluation frameworks and criteria which are available when evaluating public policies and services. It further examines the nature of evidence and its use and non-use by decision-makers and assesses the work of influential academics in the USA and UK in the context of evaluation and policy making. The book emphasises the 'real world' of decision-makers in the public sector and recognises how political demands and economic pressures can affect the decisions of those who commission evaluation research while providing recommendations for policymakers on adopting a different approach to evaluation. This is essential reading for under-graduate and post-graduate students of policy analysis and public sector management, and those who are involved in the planning and evaluation of public policies and services.

"This book provides a critical and long overdue analysis of the contribution of decades of evaluation research to policy making. The text is concise, comprehensive, objective and eminently readable." -- Philip Jacobs, University of Alberta and the Institute of Health Economics, Canada. "In an era of resource constraint the case for improving the way public policy is evaluated gains weight. This wide-ranging book provides an in-depth analysis of alternative approaches to evaluation that will be of great interest to both scholars and policy makers." --- Robin Hambleton, University of the West of England, Bristol.

List of tables and figures	p. iv
Preface	p. v
Acknowledgements	p. vii
Evaluation in the political and academic worlds	p. 1
What is meant by evaluation?	p. 17
Designing evaluations	p. 55
Selecting evaluation criteria	p. 93
Developments in economic evaluation	p. 125
The impact of evaluation on decision making	p. 157
The future for evaluation	p. 195
Concluding thoughts	p. 233
Index	p. 241
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

ISBN: 9781847429148
ISBN-10: 1847429149
Audience: Tertiary; University or College
Format: Paperback
Language: English
Number Of Pages: 256
Published: 1st June 2012
Dimensions (cm): 23.4 x 15.6  x 1.5
Weight (kg): 0.363