Participatory Evaluation
Promises and Pitfalls
Brad Cousins, Ph.D.
University of Ottawa
CaDEA Workshop Series, Session 3, Yaoundé, October 2010
Evaluation: What is it?
Systematic inquiry for the purpose of judging the
merit, worth and/or significance of [programs]
OR to support decision making about [them]
OR, said differently
Information gathered to determine if programs or
projects are accomplishing what is intended and
how to improve them.
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Judgement: What is it?
Judgement implies comparison between
observations (data, information) and
something:
1. other programs or projects
2. same program/project at earlier point in
time, and/or
3. external standard, benchmark, measuring
stick.
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Participatory evaluation
What is it?
Evaluation where trained evaluators work
in partnership with program / project
stakeholders to produce evaluative
knowledge
It’s an approach, not a model, not a design
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Why do it?
Solve practical problems (pragmatic,
instrumental)
Skill building, working toward selfdetermination and action (political,
transformative)
Develop understanding and meaning
(philosophic)
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Two Streams of Participatory
Evaluation
Practical Participatory Evaluation (P-PE)
Utilization-oriented, problem solving
Transformative Participatory Evaluation (TPE)
Emancipatory, empowerment-oriented
When to do it?
Formative, improvement-oriented
context.
Reasonable consensus on issues
Commitment is there: organizational,
program practitioner, community.
Sufficient resource base of time, money
and personnel.
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Who contributes what?
Evaluator/evaluation team
– Standards of professional practice
– Evaluation logic, knowledge skill
– (Content / context knowledge)
Non-evaluator stakeholder
– Knowledge of program context
– Knowledge of program function
– (Evaluation logic)
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What does it look like?
3 Dimensions of Collaborative Inquiry
Who Controls? technical decision making (evaluator vs.
stakeholder)
Stakeholder selection for participation? of
stakeholders selected for participation (diverse vs.
limited)
How Deep? Stakeholder participation (involved in all
aspects of inquiry vs. involved as a source for
consultation)
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What does it look like?
Promises
Enhanced use of findings of evaluation
(especially learning)
Process use: individual, group,
organization
Cultural relevance: integration of
alternative ways of knowing
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Pitfalls
Threat of self-serving bias
Power imbalance, conflict in values,
Feasibility: coordination demands,
workload demands
Accuracy: trade offs between rigour and
relevance
Sustainability: transfer of leadership
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Selected readings
Cousins, J. B. (2003). Utilization effects of participatory evaluation. In T.
Kellaghan, D. L. Stufflebeam & L. A. Wingate (Eds.), International
handbook of educational evaluation (pp. 245-265). Boston: Kluwer.
Cousins, J. B., & Chouinard, J. (2010). A review and integration of
empirical research on participatory evaluation. Paper presented at the
Virtual Conference on Methodology in Programme Evaluation,
Johannesburg, University of Witswatersrand http://wpeg.wits.ac.za/.
Cousins, J. B., & Whitmore, E. (1998). Framing participatory evaluation. In
E. Whitmore (Ed.), Understanding and practicing participatory
evaluation. New Directions in Evaluation, No. 80 (pp. 3-23). San
Francisco: Jossey Bass.
Daigneault, P.-M., & Jacob, S. (2009). Toward accurate measurement of
participation: Rethinking the conceptualization and operationalization of
participatory evaluation. American Journal of Evaluation, 30(3), 330348.
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