Amplifying voices: Understanding and illuminating the deep context of Research on Evaluation in the Global South

Abstract Information: There is growing recognition of the importance of Research on Evaluation (RoE) in the Global South (GS) as organizations try to improve their evaluations by making them more sensitive to local contexts, cultures, and priorities (Stockmann et al. 2023). However, the reviews of RoE efforts have been limited to the efforts undertaken in the Global North (Azzam & Jacobson, 2015; Coryn et al., 2017; Vallin et al., 2015), which is a limitation that needs to be addressed by also studying RoE in the Global South to give a holistic picture of the current state of RoE. The purpose of this paper is to map the RoE in the GS by studying the deep context of RoE initiatives. We limit our analysis to studies published in the English language that present an empirical investigation of evaluation practice or discuss evaluation theory following the RoE definition given by Coryn et al. (2017) - “Any purposeful, systematic, empirical inquiry intended to test existing knowledge, contribute to existing knowledge, or generate new knowledge related to some aspect of evaluation processes or products or evaluation theories, methods, or practices (p. 161)”. This paper unpacks the evaluation context by exploring salient dimensions of the context relevant to RoE interventions in the Global South. In this paper, we present the processes and descriptive results of a systematic review of RoE articles published in evaluation-focused peer-reviewed journals or other evaluation literature (e.g., books, reports, gray literature) from 2013 to 2023. We analyze the context of RoE across the following domains: a. Geographical location: Place of the research and evaluation site(s) b. Inquiry focus: We classify the studies as evaluation context, activities, use, consequences, and professional issues based on Mark (2008) c. Institutional ownership: We classify the studies based on who funded and/or owns the research. d. Field: The field or domain where the RoE is situated. For example, public health, public policy, education, development Across these domains, we also analyze the underlying value proposition or axiological framework of the RoE e.g. value-engaged, decolonized, efficiency, empowerment etc. We conclude with a discussion of the strengths, limitations, and opportunities for future work. To our knowledge, this will be the first effort to review Research on Evaluation in the Global South. A comprehensive review of RoE in the Global South can help highlight gaps, identify understudied areas, and provide guidance for improvement in research on evaluation in a culturally responsive manner.