THIS DOI METADATA WAS LAST UPDATED: 2024-01-10 22:57
Full Title
RIV Rassegna Italiana di Valutazione
Publisher
FrancoAngeli
ISSN
1826-0713 (Printed Journal)
1972-5027 (Online Journal)
Journal Issue Number
62
Journal Issue Designation
62
Journal Issue Date (YYYY/MM)
2016/05
Full Title
Metodi qualitativi e valutazione delle politiche. Lo studio dei meccanismi causali con il process tracing
By (author)
First Page
45
Last Page
64
Language of text
Italian
Publication Date
2016/05
Copyright
2015 FrancoAngeli srl
Introduction or preface
The present article aims to contribute to the debate on qualitative methods in policy evaluation. The central claim is that those methods are fundamental in order to uncover and refine our knowledge on why programmes work. The article starts with a brief review of the literature on causal mechanisms, providing a basic definition of mechanisms and discussing their utility in policy evaluation. The article proceeds by defending the methodological advantage of case studies for the formulation of new theories and then presents process tracing as a rigorous methods for drawing within-case inferences. An extended example of a local development programme is used to illustrate the method.
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