This course runs from October 29 - 31, from 10:00am - 5:00pm (EST) daily.
Valid assessment of the outcomes or impact of a social program is among the most challenging evaluation tasks, but also one of the most important. Multiple approaches exist for tracking/ detecting a program’s outcomes, and multiple methods and designs exist for estimating a program’s impact. This course will overview alternative approaches that may be more appropriate under different conditions. This includes monitoring approaches based on a small-t theory of the program’s chain of outcomes, and approaches to use when the complexity of the situation precludes placing one’s confidence in such a theory of the program. Attention will be given to the experimental and quasi-experimental methods that are the foundation for much of contemporary impact evaluation. Emphasis will primarily be conceptual, focusing on the logic of outcome and impact evaluation, the appropriateness of different approaches under different circumstances, and the conceptual and methodological nature of the approaches.