On considering the unintended impact of evaluation: reactive distortions in program goals and activities.
The relationship between program planning and evaluation can be viewed as bidirectional; that is, evaluation methods, procedures, instruments, and criteria not only are determined by, but also influence, program goals and activities. Within the human services context, several factors or sources of reactivity between evaluation and program planning can be identified. These involve (a) quantification of goals and activities, (b) preferences by different audiences for various kinds of evaluation data, (c) values and evaluation criteria, and (d) evaluation requirements and resource availability. Effects of these reactive features are discussed and illustrated with examples drawn from mental health evaluation and accountability practices. It is argued that for evaluation to be a credible and useful practice, evaluators should plan their efforts and assess their own effectiveness within the larger context of human service systems.
D003155:Community Mental Health Centers / Q000458:organization & administration*; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D009937:Organizational Objectives; D010043:Outcome and Process Assessment, Health Care / Q000379:methods; D014481:United States