5.3 Paper
© 2014 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved
Class Name,
Instructor Name
Date, Semester
Hagan, Research Methods in Criminal Justice and Criminology, 9/e
Chapter 11
Policy Analysis and Evaluation Research
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Policy Analysis
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Policy analysis is the study of the causes and consequences of government behavior (what governments do or do not do).
Evaluate Policy
Legitimize Policy
Formulate Policy
Identify Problems
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Evaluation Research
During the evaluation research stage, the following questions may be asked:
- Do the programs work?
- Do they produce the desired result?
- Do they provide enough benefits to justify their costs?
- Are there better ways to attack these problems?
- Should the programs be maintained, improved, or eliminated?
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NIJ Mission Statement
The NIJ is a research branch of the U.S.
Department of Justice.
The Institute’s mission is to develop knowledge about crime, its causes, and its control.
Priority is given to policy-relevant research that can yield approaches and information that state and local agencies can use in preventing and reducing crime.
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A Systems Model of Evaluation Research
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In a systems model, all parts of an organism,
organization, or program are interrelated
and consist of a series of inputs and outputs.
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© 2014 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved
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Types of Evaluation Research
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Process Evaluation
Establishment of relationships between
results and project inputs and activities
Impact Evaluation
Examination of relationship between outcome
and input, activities, and results of a program
Assessment
The enumeration of the need
for an activity or resource
Monitoring
Similar to auditing; assessment of whether a
program is doing what it is supposed to be doing
in terms of process or program activities
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Types of Evaluation Research
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Who Can Do This Work?
Is the Project Evaluable?
Will the Findings Be Used?
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© 2014 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved
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Steps in Evaluation Research
The actual steps in evaluation research do not differ significantly from the basic steps in the research process that were identified in Chapter 1.
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Data
Analysis
Findings
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Conclusions
Utilization
Data
Collection
Design of
Instruments
Problem
Formulation
Research
Design
(Evaluation
Model)
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The Campbell Collaboration
The Campbell Collaboration (C2) is an international research organization founded in 2000 and dedicated to preparing, maintaining, and publicizing systematic reviews of research on the effects of social and educational programs and interventions.
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Researchers and Host Agencies
The National Advisory Committee suggests the following guidelines with respect to relationships between those performing evaluation research and the host agencies:
R&D funding agencies that support studies of criminal justice organizations should be sure that researchers who conduct such studies are sensitive to the needs of the organizations that are part of the study. Such sensitivity will in- crease the likelihood of completing the project to the satisfaction of the funding agency, the organization that is part of the study (host agency), and the research team.
National Advisory Committee on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals. Criminal Justice Research and Development. Report of the Task Force on Criminal Justice Research and Development. Washington, DC: Law Enforcement Assistance Administration, December 1976, p. 133.
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© 2014 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved
Policy analysis is the study of government behavior. It includes proposals, programs, decisions, and effects. The policy process involves identification, formulation, legitimation, implementation, and evaluation.
Policy experiments are applied field experiments with immediate practical policy implications.
Evaluation research is an applied branch of social science that evaluates policies and programs to determine whether and how well they work.
A systems model of evaluation research consists of inputs, activities, results, outcomes, and feedback.
CHAPTER SUMMARY
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© 2014 by Pearson Higher Education, Inc Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved
Before an evaluation is undertaken, three crucial questions must be answered: Will the findings be used? Is the project evaluable? Who can do this work?
The steps in evaluation research are problem formulation, design of instruments, research design, data collection, data analysis, findings and conclusions, and utilization.
Some pitfalls in evaluation research are poor evaluation design and methodology, poor data analysis, unethical evaluations, naive or unprepared evaluation staff, poor relationships between evaluation and program staff, co-optation of evaluation staff and/or design, poor-quality data, poor literature reviews, and focus on method rather than process.
Of particular importance in effective evaluation is the need for effective relationships between the researcher and the host agency.
CHAPTER SUMMARY
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