This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Berry, L. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Berry, L. Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Providing Guidance for Program Evaluations

Sunset Reviews Versus Evaluation Plans

Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee

This article reviews two approaches to encouraging program managers to conduct evaluations and to improve the quality of their evaluations. The two approaches are Sunset reviews and evaluation plans. Examples of the application of each approach to energy conservation programs are discussed. The strengths and weaknesses of both approaches are considered and recommendations about how to improve the guidance process are presented. A guidance process that combines the best features of both approaches is needed. The essential problem is to strike the proper balance between universal requirements and specific designs, methods, and procedures that are feasible to implement. Sunset review requirements ensure that some evaluation is conducted by all program managers, but do little to improve the quality of specific evaluation efforts. The evaluation plan approach, in contrast, leads to good resultsfor specific programs, but does little to ensure that comparisons across programs can be made. If generic evaluation plans matched to appropriate program types were combined with Sunset mandates for evaluation, significant improvements in the quality, comparability, and agencywide coverage of evaluation efforts should result.

Evaluation Review, Vol. 10, No. 6, 757-775 (1986)
DOI: 10.1177/0193841X8601000602


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				C. Opheim, L. Curry, and P. M. Shields Sunset as Oversight: Establishing Realistic Objectives The American Review of Public Administration, September 1, 1994; 24(3): 253 - 268. [Abstract]