LIST OF WORKSHOPS

Public policy evaluation is a set of theories, methods and research techniques whose essential objective is to improve public policies through the feedback it produces for various policy makers. Carol Weiss defines evaluation as ‘the systematic assessment of the operations and/or the outcomes of a programme or policy, ... as a means of contributing to the improvement of the program or policy’.

The analysis of the interests informing policy is part of policy studies, as much as the interaction with politics is a central aim of policy evaluation. Interaction with clients and policy makers is crucial for improving public interventions.  This implies, therefore, that evaluation does not simply focus on technical approaches based on ontologies or techniques, but must also strengthen the basis of judgements. It is about influencing policy ideas.

In this regard, the issue of the relationship between evaluation, evaluators and policy makers is an important area for discussion and development, as is the issue of approaches that can foster interaction. Various perspectives have been developed from the debate.

First, the uses of evaluation perspective tend to focus on the various ways in which institutions and policy makers use evaluation, as well as analysing the factors that favour and inhibit one or another use (Weiss 1979; Chelimski 1997; Furubo & Stame 2019; Kupiec & al. 2025).

Second, processes that stem from the institutionalisation of evaluation are also relevant. This is the idea that the processes that have extended from the formalisation of evaluation in the government apparatus and parliaments and in private organisations and NGOs involved in public policy have tended to determine the form and questions that define evaluation relevance (Stockmann & Meyer Eds. 2020; Stockmann, Zandniapour & Meyer Eds. 2022; Ben Brik Ed. 2025).

Third, over the last decade, both the public policy and program evaluation literature have engaged in intense debate on evidence-based (and informed-based) policy making, which has concentrated on methodological concerns, but also the behaviour of policy makers. In recent years, this debate has focused on the relationship between science and public policy decisions, as well as on the post-truth era and the influence of social media and “fake news” in political struggles (Cartwright & Hardie 2012; Head 2016; Brouselle et al. 2024).

Fourth, there is another ongoing debate that centres on whether evaluation should play a primarily technical or political role. Those who view it as a technical endeavour are often linked to positivist or post-positivist traditions — the “truth seekers.” But other perspectives take the opposite perspective arguing that evaluation and evaluators have an inherently political and advocacy function: to act as a constant reminder of the importance of democratic values and social inclusion in public life (Greene, 1997;  Stame 2006; Dahler-Larsen 2011).

Finally, consistent with the initial question is the debate on policy advice and policy learning, which are also relevant to evaluators: the idea that the processes through which recommendations to decision makers are not only developed (and by whom), but also delivered and effective in triggering policy or programmatic learning (Eichbaum & Shaw 2020; Hustedt & Lodge 2022; Schmidt 2007; Varone et al, 2023). For many in the evaluation use literature, this is the most significant contribution of evaluation.

The starting question for the Panel to be held at IWPP5 is, therefore, as follows: How can policy or program evaluation play a more effective role in public policy-making so as to ultimately improve policy outputs?

We are seeking theoretical and applied research contributions that will inform this question with case studies on individual countries and comparative contexts using the various perspectives provided. Papers will be accepted that develop along the following themes:

- What are the enabling factors that encourage the development of demand for evaluation by policy makers?
- Evaluation is based on approaches and techniques (both quantitative and qualitative) to formulate judgements based on evidence and verifiable information. - But what forms can make policy advice more effective?
- What role do values and political ideas play in the relationship between evaluators, commissioners, and, more broadly, the public of evaluation? How do these actors influence the objectives, process, and outcomes of evaluation?
- What skills or competencies do evaluators require to better inform advice to policymakers?
- Has the institutionalisation of evaluation in public administration led to greater attention and use by policy makers? Are there particular policy areas or contexts that have encouraged the use of evaluation research more than others?

The workshop is open to contributions from different disciplines. Our objective is to compare experiences from different countries and different policy areas. Participants will be asked to contribute to the discussion by commenting on at least one of the papers presented.

What conditions are needed to interact with policymakers to influence public policies? By centring the discussion on evaluation use, rather than simply evaluation methods, this workshop will advance the scholarly and practical understanding of how evaluation contributes to public policy decision-making in practice. The workshop is expected to bridge the gap between evaluation, evidence use, policy advice, and public policy-making. It aims to create new frameworks for the skills, strategies, and institutional arrangements that will allow evaluation to be used in a more meaningful way by policy actors. The outputs of this workshop may form the basis of a new special issue, potentially in Canadian Public Administration or an international journal focused on the politics and practice of evaluation use in the public sector.

Giancarlo Vecchi (invited discussant, Politecnico di Milano, Italy)

Giancarlo Vecchi, associate professor of Public Policy at the School of Management of the Politecnico di Milano. He teaches “Public Analysis” and “Policy Design & Evaluation”. Past president of the Italian Evaluation Society (2002-2003). Recent research regards: Cybersecurity as a Public Policy. The Institutionalization of platform and network security in the EU and Italy; The modernization of the Italian Judicial system; The development of digitization in the Italian & European public sector. The Evaluation of protected areas policy; P-Cube: Teaching Public Policy through an educational digital game. His key qualifications are in the field of Public Policy Analysis, applied to the following aspects: institutional and capacity building; public sector reforms (with special attention to ICT-driven innovations in the public sector); policy design & public policy evaluation.