Values in evaluation and social research

Bibliographic Information

Values in evaluation and social research

by Ernest R. House, Kenneth R. Howe

Sage Publications, c1999

  • : hbk
  • : pbk

Available at  / 10 libraries

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Note

Bibliography: p. 139-143

Includes indexes

Description and Table of Contents

Description

"Values in Evaluation is a breakthrough book that will change the way evaluators think about the relationship between facts and values. Using the tools of philosophy and insights from evaluation practice, the authors attack the inconsistencies in current thinking about the interplay of facts and values and give us an outline for reconstructing the approach to values within evaluation." --Gary T. Henry, Georgia State University "This book, as the title promises, unfurls the concept of value in the practice of program evaluation. The editors go well beyond recognizing that all data gathering and description are value laden and that all evaluators have value commitments shaping their designs. They examine the ethical and political burdens accompanying any evaluation contract. Out of an extended collaboration, Kenneth R. Howe and Ernest R. House together redirect their advocacy toward the pursuit of democracy." --Robert E. Stake, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign The authors use the tools of philosophy and the insights from evaluation practice to cut through current confusion about values and the interplay of facts and values. Four views of facts and values in evaluation are analyzed: those rooted in a fact-value dichotomy and those of radical constructivists, postmodernists, and deliberative democrats. The arguments are tough, the prose concise, and the insights compelling.

Table of Contents

Introduction The Problem of Values PART ONE: VALUE CLAIMS Facts and Values Evaluative Reasoning PART TWO: CRITIQUES OF OTHER VIEWS The Received View The Radical Constructivist View The Postmodern View PART THREE: DELIBERATIVE DEMOCRATIC EVALUATION The Deliberative Democratic View Good Practice Conclusion The Role of Evaluation in Society

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