Theories of change in reality : strengths, limitations and future directions / edited by Andrew Koleros, Marie-Helene Adrien, Tony Tyrrell.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Foreword / Emily Gates, Kiruba Murugaiah, and Kathy Chau Rohn -- Introduction / Andrew Koleros, Marie-Helene Adrien, Tony Tyrrell -- Considerations in using theories of change to establish causality. Setting the stage for contribution claims / Thomas Delahais -- Using theories of change to assess causality in a policy change context / Carlisle J. Levine -- My perspective on theories of change / Markus Palenberg -- Theories of change between critical thinking and social practices / Peter Dahler-Larsen -- How deep is your ontology? How ontological thinking can strengthen how evaluators use theories of change / Tom Ling -- Using theories of change to understand wider social change processes. Theory of change for sustainable business / Jens Andersson -- Upcycling theory of change for impact investment and early stage ventures / Penny Hawkins and Zazie Tolmer -- Strategy-level theories of change require a focus on systems change: an actorbased approach can help / Andrew Koleros -- Evaluating the use of artificial intelligence and big data in policy making: Unpacking black boxes and testing white boxes / Frans L. Leeuw -- Developing, representing and using theories of change for interventions in complex systems / Patricia Rogers -- Adapting theories of change for use in broader public policy contexts. Theories of change in evaluation of local government reforms / Kurt Houlberg and Olaf Rieper -- Theories of change and the evaluation of sustainable impact: Moving beyond simplicity in development cooperation / Peter van der Knapp -- Use of theory of change as a management tool for government multi-year development plans: the case of Brazil's Federal Development Plan / Lycia Lima and Marina Lafer -- Theories of Change in complex macro public-sector planning settings in Africa: How useful are they? / Candice Morkel -- Simple heuristics for drafting theories of change: A case of behavioural insights into food waste / Karol Olejniczak and Igor Lyubashenko -- Applying theories of change approaches for multiple purposes. The law of the instrument: Would you rather be a theory or a nail? / Gordon Freer -- ie: a 'balloon-squeezing' approach to the theory of change / Marie Moland Gaarder -- Integrating theories of change in programme management and delivery / Mark Oldenbeuving -- Theories of change: Who needs them? Or: What evaluators can learn from opera / Burt Perrin -- How to ensure no-one uses your theory of change: Lessons from the front lines of theory of change facilitation and possibilities for renewal / Mary Tangelder -- Why do we have theories of change of the program intervention but not of the intervention that is the evaluation? / Bob Williams -- Developing theories of change that reflect multiple stakeholder perspectives. Participatory explorations of alternative futures: Using narrative theories of -- change / Rick Davies, Lara Mani and Tom Hobson -- Constructing a living theory of change in fluid and volatile environments: Grounded on context, problem and evidence / Hur Hassnain -- Flipping the script on program theories: Advancing towards transformative theories of change / Sebastian Lemire -- Theory-based evaluation approaches can enable online project success / Steve Montague, Heloise Emdon and Eva Grabinski -- Theory of change as a tool for tracking Intensive Family Programme developments in Whitetown / Jane Mulcahey, Catherine Naughton and Sean Redmond -- Conclusions around theories of change in reality / Andrew Koleros, Marie-Helene Adrien, Tony Tyrrell.

"For over fifty years, evaluators have used theories of change to articulate the causal logic underpinning how an intervention is intended to bring about a desired change. From its origins in program evaluation, the approach has been adopted more widely for purposes from programme design to programme management. As theories of change continue to be used for multiple purposes, it is an opportune moment for the evaluation community - where the approach originated - to provide their perspective on the strengths and limitations of the approach and its future directions. To provide these perspectives, we asked nearly thirty of the world's leading evaluators and program theorists to provide a short essay on the past, present and future of theories of change. This book presents their insights organized into five main themes: the use of theories of change in broader public policy contexts; using theories of change to establish causality; developing theories of change reflective of multiple stakeholder perspectives; using theories of change to understand wider societal change processes; and applying theories of change approaches for multiple purposes. By sharing these diverse perspectives, the book aims to both provide evaluators and emerging programme theorists with critical perspectives to inform future practice"-- Provided by publisher.