This paper focuses on the application of systems thinking concepts to evaluate systems. The term... more This paper focuses on the application of systems thinking concepts to evaluate systems. The terms systems and systems thinking concepts are first defined. The use of systems thinking concepts in program and system evaluation are then highlighted. It is noted that while there are methods available to assist evaluation practitioners in applying systems thinking concepts to program evaluation, there is a need for similar guidance in applying systems thinking concepts to evaluating systems. System Evaluation Theory (SET) is then reviewed as one evaluation theory designed to apply systems thinking concepts to evaluating systems. A case illustration is presented to help teach practitioners how to apply SET’s three steps. The discussion focuses on comparing the differences between evaluation questions answered by applying systems thinking concepts versus those using program logic models.
... 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 40 1 2 3 4 5 Character Strengths and Virtues: Their Role in Well-BeingCHRISTO... more ... 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 40 1 2 3 4 5 Character Strengths and Virtues: Their Role in Well-BeingCHRISTOPHER PETERSON and ... Character strengths not only prevent undesirable life outcomes (Botvin, Baker, Dusenbury, Botvin, & Diaz, 1995) but are important in their own right as indica ...
International Journal of Cross Cultural Management, 2020
Behavioral performance indicators linked to traits of adaptability and proactivity have been incr... more Behavioral performance indicators linked to traits of adaptability and proactivity have been increasingly promoted in workplace management initiatives as predictors of high performance and employee potential (Grant and Ashford, 2008; Griffin et al., 2007). While these behaviors have been found to be helpful heuristics in Western workplace research samples, additional insight would help managers understand how they vary across geographical regions amidst rapidly expanding multinational markets. This study aimed to examine the relationship between workplace performance behaviors of adaptability and proactivity across diverse geographical regions, including North and South America, Asia, Africa, Europe, and Oceania. Using data gathered from professional employees from global companies, the study sample consisted of 3,860 participants working across 15 countries (Australia, Brazil, China, France, Germany, Great Britain, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Philippines...
The conclusion of the book. In this concluding chapters the editors discuss the main themes and h... more The conclusion of the book. In this concluding chapters the editors discuss the main themes and how they forge new paths within the field
The need for high-quality evaluation is an important factor in many international development pro... more The need for high-quality evaluation is an important factor in many international development projects. These programs often have ambitious outcomes that are not easy to measure and evaluate
The pursuit of culturally responsive approaches for designing and evaluating programs to promote ... more The pursuit of culturally responsive approaches for designing and evaluating programs to promote social justice has become of the utmost importance to the evaluation community in the past decade. A strengths-focused evaluation approach has great promise for empowering individuals, groups, communities, and organizations, and identifying program strengths to build upon in addition to illuminating program deficits. However, there is a dearth of literature on using a strengths approach to evaluate interventions and programs to promote social justice. Drawing from the two disciplines of positive psychology and evaluation, this article illustrates a strengths-focused approach to formative evaluation using a case example of a halfway house for previously incarcerated women. The findings exemplify the positive psychological phenomena that emerge as a result of focusing the evaluation on program strengths. The case demonstrates that the application of a strengths-focused approach to evaluating social justice interventions can be empowering for institutions and the communities they serve.
Reference to theory is widespread in the contemporary evaluation literature, but what is meant by... more Reference to theory is widespread in the contemporary evaluation literature, but what is meant by theory encompasses a confusing mix of concepts related to evaluators ’ notions about how evaluation should be practiced, explanatory frameworks for social phenomena drawn from social science, and assumptions about how programs function, or are supposed to function. A newcomer to evaluation, and even a grizzled veteran, could have a difficult time sorting through the closely related and sometimes interchangeable terms that litter the evaluation landscape— theories of practice, theory-based evaluation, theory-driven evaluation, program theory, evaluation theory, theory of change, logic models, and the like. Aside from considerable potential for confusion, the nature and role of theory in evaluation is often a contentious matter. On the one hand, such distinguished evaluators as Scriven (1998, 2004a,b) and Stufflebeam (2001, 2004) have asserted that there is little need for theory or, at l...
This paper focuses on the application of systems thinking concepts to evaluate systems. The term... more This paper focuses on the application of systems thinking concepts to evaluate systems. The terms systems and systems thinking concepts are first defined. The use of systems thinking concepts in program and system evaluation are then highlighted. It is noted that while there are methods available to assist evaluation practitioners in applying systems thinking concepts to program evaluation, there is a need for similar guidance in applying systems thinking concepts to evaluating systems. System Evaluation Theory (SET) is then reviewed as one evaluation theory designed to apply systems thinking concepts to evaluating systems. A case illustration is presented to help teach practitioners how to apply SET’s three steps. The discussion focuses on comparing the differences between evaluation questions answered by applying systems thinking concepts versus those using program logic models.
... 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 40 1 2 3 4 5 Character Strengths and Virtues: Their Role in Well-BeingCHRISTO... more ... 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 40 1 2 3 4 5 Character Strengths and Virtues: Their Role in Well-BeingCHRISTOPHER PETERSON and ... Character strengths not only prevent undesirable life outcomes (Botvin, Baker, Dusenbury, Botvin, & Diaz, 1995) but are important in their own right as indica ...
International Journal of Cross Cultural Management, 2020
Behavioral performance indicators linked to traits of adaptability and proactivity have been incr... more Behavioral performance indicators linked to traits of adaptability and proactivity have been increasingly promoted in workplace management initiatives as predictors of high performance and employee potential (Grant and Ashford, 2008; Griffin et al., 2007). While these behaviors have been found to be helpful heuristics in Western workplace research samples, additional insight would help managers understand how they vary across geographical regions amidst rapidly expanding multinational markets. This study aimed to examine the relationship between workplace performance behaviors of adaptability and proactivity across diverse geographical regions, including North and South America, Asia, Africa, Europe, and Oceania. Using data gathered from professional employees from global companies, the study sample consisted of 3,860 participants working across 15 countries (Australia, Brazil, China, France, Germany, Great Britain, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Philippines...
The conclusion of the book. In this concluding chapters the editors discuss the main themes and h... more The conclusion of the book. In this concluding chapters the editors discuss the main themes and how they forge new paths within the field
The need for high-quality evaluation is an important factor in many international development pro... more The need for high-quality evaluation is an important factor in many international development projects. These programs often have ambitious outcomes that are not easy to measure and evaluate
The pursuit of culturally responsive approaches for designing and evaluating programs to promote ... more The pursuit of culturally responsive approaches for designing and evaluating programs to promote social justice has become of the utmost importance to the evaluation community in the past decade. A strengths-focused evaluation approach has great promise for empowering individuals, groups, communities, and organizations, and identifying program strengths to build upon in addition to illuminating program deficits. However, there is a dearth of literature on using a strengths approach to evaluate interventions and programs to promote social justice. Drawing from the two disciplines of positive psychology and evaluation, this article illustrates a strengths-focused approach to formative evaluation using a case example of a halfway house for previously incarcerated women. The findings exemplify the positive psychological phenomena that emerge as a result of focusing the evaluation on program strengths. The case demonstrates that the application of a strengths-focused approach to evaluating social justice interventions can be empowering for institutions and the communities they serve.
Reference to theory is widespread in the contemporary evaluation literature, but what is meant by... more Reference to theory is widespread in the contemporary evaluation literature, but what is meant by theory encompasses a confusing mix of concepts related to evaluators ’ notions about how evaluation should be practiced, explanatory frameworks for social phenomena drawn from social science, and assumptions about how programs function, or are supposed to function. A newcomer to evaluation, and even a grizzled veteran, could have a difficult time sorting through the closely related and sometimes interchangeable terms that litter the evaluation landscape— theories of practice, theory-based evaluation, theory-driven evaluation, program theory, evaluation theory, theory of change, logic models, and the like. Aside from considerable potential for confusion, the nature and role of theory in evaluation is often a contentious matter. On the one hand, such distinguished evaluators as Scriven (1998, 2004a,b) and Stufflebeam (2001, 2004) have asserted that there is little need for theory or, at l...
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