Numbers or words? The qualitative vs quantitative debate
Over the past 20 years or so, a debate over the relative virtues of quantitative and qualitative methodology has gained considerable momentum. In the field of social research and evaluation, quantitative research has been considered as the more ‘traditional’ approach to addressing a research question. Decades ago, researchers advocating for the use of qualitative methods […]
Read moreHow good is good?
The practice of evaluation involves arriving at succinct answers to important questions. This is also known as evaluative reasoning. Evaluative reasoning is what distinguishes from research. Evaluations involve conducting research, but they go further, to determine merit of worth, with the aim of making evaluative conclusions. To evaluate is to make deductive arguments and claims […]
Read moreGathering dust or momentum? 6 ways to ensure your commissioned report is adopted
Have you commissioned an evaluation or a piece of research that resulted in a report sitting unused? Anecdotal evidence suggests that more than half of evaluation results go unused. There are a number of aspects of evaluation reporting that can affect how information is used. The study purpose, stakeholder needs and target audience should […]
Read moreGoal-free evaluation. What is it and why is it important?
Evaluation is a relatively young discipline, growing in theory and practice. There are many theories and approaches to evaluation practice, but fundamentally, the disciplines involves determining the merit, worth and value of things. Unlike pure social research, the practice of evaluation is about making a judgement on the worth of something. One of the […]
Read moreActionable Evaluation – 6 elements
Have you seen evaluation reports that may be technically adequate and accurate, yet are almost impossible to decipher? They may have been full of detailed charts, tables, statistics, and qualitative research findings, yet they seemed to make no sense and it was difficult to understand their purpose. According to internationally recognised evaluation specialist, E. Jane […]
Read moreSticking your neck out- choosing focus groups or individual interviews
Qualitative research provides researchers and evaluators with detailed information about attitudes, views, behaviour and preferences. Two common qualitative research techniques are focus groups (group discussions) and one-on-one interviews (also called in-depth interviews). The interactive nature of both of these approaches means that their success is dependent on the skills of the interviewer or moderator. There […]
Read moreEstimating market size like Fermi
Enrico Fermi (1901-1954) was an eminent physicist who developed a knack for intuitive, even casual sounding measurements. The value of quick estimates was something Fermi was familiar with. He was well known for teaching his students skills to approximate fanciful-sounding quantities that, at first glance, they might presume they knew nothing about. The best […]
Read moreThe long and short of measurement
The concept of measurement can be daunting. As a research and evaluation consultant I am often asked whether my approach will be ‘statistically significant’ or how reliable the outcomes will be. Here are a few basic elements of evaluation and measurement which should hopefully address some of these questions. The concept of measurement The […]
Read moreThe reliability of qualitative research
Reliability is a concept that refers to producing consistent results time after time. If you commission a qualitative research or evaluation project, how can you be sure it is reliable? Don’t you need statistics to make research reliable? No. Because, although the term ‘reliability’ is usually applied as a concept for testing or evaluating quantitative […]
Read moreUnwillingness to answer. 4 reasons why people refuse to respond
If you’ve ever used a survey in a research or evaluation project, you may have encountered unanswered questions by some respondents. Even if respondents are able to answer a particular question, they may be unwilling to do so. There are usually four key reasons why respondents sometimes don’t answer questions in surveys. 1. It’s too […]
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