It is argued here that the general view, especially in the social sciences, of the specific status of evaluation is still deeply impregnated with completely absurd misrepresentations. A number of the worst are documented and refuted here, along with some suggestions as to their roots. It is stressed that the consequences of this tangled net of…

In this paper, the author considers certain aspects of the problem of obtaining unbiased information about the merits of a program or product, whether for purposes of decision making or for accountability. The evaluation of personnel, as well as the evaluation of proposals and evaluations, generally involves a different set of problems than those…

This review focuses on what the author terms a reconsideration of the working credentials of the randomly controlled trial (RCT) design, and includes a discussion of popularly accepted aspects as well as some new perspectives. The author concludes that there is nothing either Imperative or superior about the need for RCT designs, and that an…

This research describes, classifies, and comparatively evaluates national models and mechanisms used to evaluate research and allocate research funding in 16 countries. Although these models and mechanisms vary widely in terms of how research is evaluated and financed, nearly all share the common characteristic of relating funding to some measure…