Evaluation in the age of evidence-based policymaking: Promises, pitfalls and paths forward
| Published date | 01 September 2020 |
| Date | 01 September 2020 |
| Author | Gary VanLandingham |
| DOI | 10.1177/1035719X20928164 |
| Subject Matter | Academic Article |
https://doi.org/10.1177/1035719X20928164
Evaluation Journal of Australasia
2020, Vol. 20(3) 129 –139
© The Author(s) 2020
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DOI: 10.1177/1035719X20928164
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Evaluation in the age of
evidence-based policymaking:
Promises, pitfalls and paths
forward
Gary VanLandingham
Florida State University, USA
Abstract
Evaluators have long sought a world in which our work makes a tangible difference
to society, but that goal has often seemed out of reach. However, in recent years,
advocates have proclaimed an era of evidence-based policymaking in which the What
Works data generated by evaluations will be increasingly used to inform programme
and policy choices. Four primary factors have been critical to the rise of this approach
– attaining a critical mass of curated What Works’ evidence, growing interest
among political leaders in considering this information when making choices, new
budgetary mechanisms for using these data and new tools that facilitate rigorous
outcome studies. However, the movement also faces critical challenges including
the growing distrust of empirical data among some political factions, leaks in the
evaluation pipeline that generates data to identify What Works and the replication
failure of many evidence-based interventions. The evaluation field should support this
movement through efforts to plug leaks in the evidence pipeline, stronger efforts
to assess implementation challenges, training students in evidence-based approaches
and assisting in outreach to policymakers.
Keywords
evaluation utilization, evidence-based policymaking, meta-analysis, replication, What
Works
Corresponding author:
Gary VanLandingham, Askew School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University,
Tallahassee, FL 32312-5097, USA.
Email: gvanlandingham@fsu.edu
928164EVJ0010.1177/1035719X20928164Evaluation Journal of AustralasiaVanLandingham
research-article2020
Academic Article
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