The Power of Evaluation

Authors

  • Kettil Nordesjö Department of Social Work, Malmö University, Sweden
  • Mats Fred Department of Political Science, Lund University, Sweden

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.58235/sjpa.v25i3-4.7048

Abstract

The aim of this special issue is to invite scholars in public administration to address issues of power in relation to evaluation practices in the public sector. Power is one of those big, difficult, and inherently nebulous concepts that both scholars and practitioners appear to consciously or unconsciously avoid. Our ambition in this introduction is not to present a comprehensive conceptual review of power, let alone to present the many different aspects of evaluation. Rather, this is a humble attempt to foster a more explicit discussion of the relationship between power and evaluation. The aim of this introduction is, firstly, to introduce a few basic distinctions and conceptualisations of the relationship between power and evaluation. Secondly, we would like to highlight three themes where power may be an especially fruitful lens when analysing, or just trying to make sense of, evaluation procedures. These are themes found in evaluation research, but where power is not always acknowledged or accounted for. We call them (1) Evaluation and instrumental power, (2) Evaluation and contextual power, and (3) Evaluation and performative power.

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Author Biographies

Kettil Nordesjö, Department of Social Work, Malmö University, Sweden

Kettil Nordesjö is Associate Senior Lecturer at the Department of Social Work, Malmö University, Sweden. He has previously worked as an evaluator and been a board member of the Swedish evaluation society. His current research interests concern evaluation, standardization and digitalization in social work and public administration.

Mats Fred, Department of Political Science, Lund University, Sweden

Mats Fred is Associate Senior Lecturer in Public Administration at the Department of Political Science, Lund University, Sweden. His research revolves around the organization and governance of the public sector with a specific focus on temporary and ‘experimental’ forms of organization.

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Published

2021-12-15

How to Cite

Nordesjö, K., & Fred, M. (2021). The Power of Evaluation. Scandinavian Journal of Public Administration, 25(3/4), 3–15. https://doi.org/10.58235/sjpa.v25i3-4.7048

Issue

Section

Special Issue Introduction