Values in Evaluation and Social Research

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

"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 thei 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