7 - Identifying & Dismantling Mindsets that Hinder Stakeholder Involvement in Developmental Evaluation

Abstract Information: Developmental evaluation (DE) offers a dynamic framework particularly suited for navigating complexity and fostering real-time learning and adaptation. Central to its success is the inclusion of stakeholders throughout the evaluation process, recognizing their invaluable perspectives, expertise, and contextual insights, and ensuring that the evaluation centers their needs and interests. However, traditional mindsets and ingrained ways of working often hinder the full embrace and operationalization of collaborative, participatory, and empowerment evaluation methods, even among stakeholders and evaluators who acknowledge their importance.

This Birds of a Feather Gathering invites developmental evaluators utilizing stakeholder involvement approaches such as collaborative, participatory, or empowerment evaluation in a discussion to identify mindsets that persistently obstruct inclusive, equitable evaluation practices. Through peer sharing, we will identify mindsets held both by evaluators and stakeholders, which might include fear of relinquishing control, skepticism about the validity of participatory methods, or discomfort with shifting power dynamics, exacerbated by ingrained individual work styles and organizational cultures shaped by norms rooted in white supremacy. The discussion will serve as a forum to begin to identify and dismantle mindset barriers, as well as build on participants experiences and insights to collaboratively identify practices for overcoming mindset barriers and fostering genuine stakeholder engagement and ownership in DE.

Join us in making space for a supportive conversation with peers where we can address mindsets that are barriers to embracing the transformative power of stakeholder-involved evaluation. We believe that when stakeholders become active partners in the evaluation process, we can unlock new possibilities for equity, relevance, and impact in social change efforts.