Читать книгу An Introduction to Evaluation - Chris Fox - Страница 81

There is not, and neither should there be, anything problematic with different stakeholders bringing different perspectives to bear in the process of developing a theory of change. If anything TOCs are strengthened by this diversity of perceptions that ground projects in its complexity and work with it. Additionally, consensus is not always the reality and power relations permeate all social relations. At some point in this process a choice needs to be made regarding which theory to accept and at this point an agreement needs to be reached.

Instead, the challenge often comes from the different assumptions, and from the difficulty in assessing which of these are critical to the overall success of the initiative. Valters (2014: 10) argues that: ‘Appreciating the difficulties inherent in this task is important, as ignoring them may encourage discussion of arbitrary assumptions or allow people to uncover only those assumptions that they are comfortable defending.’

This poses obvious issues when it comes to evaluating the effectiveness and impact of theory-based projects. Whilst it is possible to validate the assumptions, it may be impossible to confidently say which of the ones that are supported by the evidence would play a greater role in the achievement of the desired change(s).