Gargani John
Gargani + Company, Inc., 2625 Alcatraz Avenue, Number 508, Berkeley, CA 94705, United States.
Eval Program Plann. 2013 Jun;38:81-8. doi: 10.1016/j.evalprogplan.2012.03.020. Epub 2012 Mar 10.
In response to previous papers in this issue, I consider the ways that logic models of evaluation theories may improve practice. Our conceptions of how theory informs practice are colored by who we have in mind when we speak of practitioners and theorists. I offer working definitions of these roles. It is also colored by the process we imagine connects theory to practice. I present a theory-based explanation of the factors that may shape practice and describe how theorists, using logic models, may be able to exploit these factors to promote the use of their theories. Throughout, I argue that theorists are primarily responsible for the proper use of their theories just as evaluators are primarily responsible for the proper use of their evaluations. This responsibility is best fulfilled in collaboration with the larger community of evaluators. Recent methods and software allow theorists to conduct large-scale theory-building collaborations that are organized around logic models. I discuss the benefits these advances may have for the field.
针对本期之前发表的论文，我思考了评估理论的逻辑模型可以改进实践的方式。我们对于理论如何指导实践的理解，受到我们在提及实践者和理论家时脑海中所想到的人的影响。我给出了这些角色的实用定义。它还受到我们想象中连接理论与实践的过程的影响。我提出了一个基于理论的对可能塑造实践的因素的解释，并描述了理论家如何利用逻辑模型来利用这些因素以促进其理论的应用。在整个过程中，我认为理论家主要负责正确使用他们的理论，就像评估者主要负责正确使用他们的评估一样。这种责任最好通过与更广泛的评估者群体合作来履行。最近的方法和软件使理论家能够围绕逻辑模型开展大规模的理论构建合作。我讨论了这些进展可能给该领域带来的益处。
