Deakin University
Browse

Unpacking black boxes: Mechanisms and theory building in evaluation

Download (244.15 kB)
journal contribution
posted on 2010-09-01, 00:00 authored by Brad Astbury, F Leeuw
There is growing interest in the concept of ‘‘mechanism’’ across many areas of the social sciences. In the field of program and policy evaluation, a number of scholars have also emphasized the importance of causal mechanisms for explaining how and why programs work. However, there appears to be some ambiguity about the meaning and uses of mechanism-based thinking in both the social science and evaluation literature. In this article we attempt to clarify what is meant by mechanisms in the context of program evaluation by identifying three main characteristics of mechanisms and outlining a possible typology of mechanisms. A number of theoretical and practical implications for evaluators are also discussed, along with some precautions to consider when investigating mechanisms that might plausibly account for program outcomes.

History

Journal

American journal of evaluation

Volume

31

Pagination

363 - 381

Location

London, Eng.

Open access

  • Yes

ISSN

1557-0878

Language

eng

Publication classification

C1.1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal

Copyright notice

2010, Sage Publications

Usage metrics

    Research Publications

    Categories

    No categories selected

    Exports

    RefWorks
    BibTeX
    Ref. manager
    Endnote
    DataCite
    NLM
    DC