Hello, AEA365 community! Liz DiLuzio here, Lead Curator of the blog. This week is Individuals Week, which means we take a break from our themed weeks and spotlight the Hot Tips, Cool Tricks, Rad Resources and Lessons Learned from any evaluator interested in sharing. Would you like to contribute to future individuals weeks? Email me at AEA365@eval.org with an idea or a draft and we will make it happen.
We are Agata Slota, Cassandra Ake, and Lucinda Jones with the USAID-funded Data for Impact (D4I) project. D4I supports countries to generate and use high-quality data to improve their programs, policies, and health outcomes. Our activity with D4I focuses on identifying behavioral interventions to increase the use of evaluation findings. Here are 10 evidence-based approaches your organization can try.
1. Set up Timely Reminders and Prompts
Set up automated emails or on-screen pop-ups to alert staff of new findings when they are published online. Reminders to review evidence can be sent at key decision-making points in a project life cycle. Prompts can also be added to existing guidelines and checklists, making accessing evidence routine.
2. Build Staff’s Professional Identities as Evidence Users
People tend to align their actions with their beliefs about themselves. Reminding staff of their professional identity as evidence-informed decision makers can increase evidence use. Leaders can convey such messages in emails and presentations, and language in organizational policies, codes of conduct, and guiding principles can be updated accordingly.
3. Strengthen Capacity Using Effective Adult Learning Techniques
Capacity-strengthening programs meant to increase the understanding and application of evidence should also increase individuals’ motivation. These programs can use proven adult learning techniques, such as actively engaging participants through hands-on workshops with peers.
4. Create Targeted Communication Products
Creating targeted communication products increases the likelihood of people paying attention to and absorbing information. To do this, identify the various audience groups for the evaluation findings, assess what aspects of the findings are most relevant and useful to them, and create products that are tailored in terms of formats, messages, and language.
5. Design User-Friendly Evidence Repositories and Resources for Accessing Findings
Make online evidence repositories more effective by: (1) focusing on the user experience: designing and updating the repository from the point of view of the target audiences’ needs, interests, and accessibility requirements; (2) using data visualizations such as infographics and dashboards; and (3) synthesizing findings to help reduce information overload.
6. Accredit Individuals Following Training Completion
Offering accreditation can incentivize individuals to receive training on evidence use. For example, an organization can offer training that leads to accreditation as an Evidence Dissemination Expert. When clients
and employers require or view accreditation favorably, individuals are more likely to participate in training and apply the techniques learned.
7. Strengthen Organizational Norms around Evidence Use
Organizational norms can increase evaluation findings’ use by reinforcing evidence use expectations. Norms can be reinforced by making people aware of how frequently their colleagues use evaluation findings and how much they approve of using evidence for decision making, or by publicly recognizing evidence users through awards.
8. Build a Community of Evidence Use Champions
Designate selected staff as Evidence Use Champions who will model evidence use and share new evidence with others. Champions should receive training in areas such as advocacy, and then be connected to other champions, for instance, through communities of practice. They should have clearly defined roles and objectives and be supported in this role by their organization’s leaders.
9. Create Structured Collaborations between Evaluators and Evidence Users
To be effective at increasing the use of evidence, interactions between evaluators and evidence users need to be structured and well planned, with clear objectives. These interactions need to build trust by ensuring transparency, demonstrating evaluator independence, and creating opportunities for regular contact.
10. Use Stories to Communicate Findings
Stories create emotional connections between storytellers and the audience, helping messages be absorbed, remembered, and shared further. Consider leading a communication product with a presentation of findings in narrative form—a short case study, an explanation of a finding in a broader context, or a story of how an evaluator overcame a research challenge.
Rad Resources
- Breckon, J., and Dodson, J. (2016). Using Evidence: What works? (Discussion paper). https://eppi.ioe.ac.uk/cms/Portals/0/PDF%20reviews%20and%20summaries/Alliance%20Policy%20Using%20evidence%20v4.pdf?ver=2016-04-12-152711-000
- Langer L, Tripney J, Gough D (2016). The Science of Using Science: Researching the Use of Research Evidence in Decision-Making. London: EPPI-Centre, Social Science Research Unit, UCL Institute of Education, University College London. https://eppi.ioe.ac.uk/cms/Portals/0/PDF%20reviews%20and%20summaries/Science%202016%20Langer%20report.pdf?ver=2016-04-18-142701-867
- Otten, J., Cheng, K., and Drewnowski, A. (2015). Infographics and Public Policy: Using Data Visualization to Convey Complex Information. Health Affairs, 34 (11): 1901–7. 0.1377/hlthaff.2015.0642
- Cairney, P. and Kwiatkowski, R. (2017). How to communicate effectively with policymakers: combine insights from psychology and policy studies. Palgrave Commun, 3. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-017-0046-8
- Yamin, P., Fei, M., Lahlou, S., and Levy, S. (2019). Using Social Norms to Change Behavior and Increase Sustainability in the Real World: a Systematic Review of the Literature. Sustainability, 11 (20):5847. https://doi.org/10.3390/su11205847
- Cunningham-Erves J, Stewart E, Duke J, Akohoue SA, Rowen N, Lee O, Miller ST. Training researchers in dissemination of study results to research participants and communities. Transl Behav Med. 2021 Jul 29;11(7):1411-1419. doi: 10.1093/tbm/ibab023. PMID: 33823019; PMCID: PMC8320879.
- Cvitanovic, C., Shellock, R.J., Mackay, M., van Putten, E.I., Karcher, D.B., Dickey-Collas, M., and Ballesteros, M. (2021) Strategies for building and managing ‘trust’ to enable knowledge exchange
- Behavioral Interventions for the Use of Evaluation Findings at the Interface of Environmental Science and Policy. Environmental Science & Policy, 123: 179–189. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2021.05.020
Do you have questions, concerns, kudos, or content to extend this aea365 contribution? Please add them in the comments section for this post on the aea365 webpage so that we may enrich our community of practice. Would you like to submit an aea365 Tip? Please send a note of interest to aea365@eval.org . aea365 is sponsored by the American Evaluation Association and provides a Tip-a-Day by and for evaluators. The views and opinions expressed on the AEA365 blog are solely those of the original authors and other contributors. These views and opinions do not necessarily represent those of the American Evaluation Association, and/or any/all contributors to this site.