Empowerment Evaluation is an approach which provides communities with the tools and knowledge that allows them to monitor and evaluate their own performance. First developed by David Fetterman who describe it as “the use of evaluation concepts, techniques, and findings to foster improvement and self-determination.”
Example
This key note speech from David Fetterman, given to the Librarians Association of the University of California, Berkeley, provides a number of case examples on the use of Empowerment Evaluation.
Resources
Blogs
Empowerment Evaluation Blog: This blog, by Dr David Fetterman, provides a range of resources on empowerment evaluation theory and practice. The blog includes links to videos, guides and relevant academic literature that provide a detailed analysis and discussion of using empowerment evaluation.
Video
Empowerment Evaluation: This webinar, given by David Fetterman for the American Evaluation Association’s Coffee Break series, provides an overview of empowerment evaluation by outlining examples of its use from around the world.
Overview
Taking Stock of Empowerment Evaluation: An Empirical Review: This article, written by Robin Lin Miller and Rebecca Campbell, examines 47 case studies of empowerment evaluation in order to assess their effectiveness in adhering to empowerment evaluation principles and in achieving outcomes that empower beneficiaries.
Guides
An Introduction to Empowerment Evaluation – Teaching Materials: This guide, written by Bronwyn Sherriff and Stephen Porter, provides a set of content notes and a PowerPoint presentation that aims to assist facilitators run a program introducing Empowerment Evaluation.
Evaluation for Improvement – A Seven-Step Empowerment Evaluation Approach: This guide, written by Pamela J. Cox, Dana Keener, Tifanee L. Woodard, & Abraham H. Wandersman for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) outlines a seven step process for hiring an evaluator to implement an empowerment evaluation. The process begins with preparing for the hiring and concludes with an assessment of an evaluation to ensure its sustainability.
Source
Fetterman, D. M. (1994). Steps of empowerment evaluation: From California to Cape Town. Evaluation and Program Planning, 17(3), 305–313. Retrieved from http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0149718994900108
Empowerment Evaluation. (n.d.). Retrieved January 26, 2017, from http://betterevaluation.org/en/plan/approach/empowerment_evaluation