Introduction | p. 1 |
Congress, Program Evaluation, and Policy Making | p. 5 |
Program Evaluation and Informed Policy Making | p. 7 |
Types of Program Evaluation | p. 9 |
Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs) | p. 11 |
Many Other Methods | p. 13 |
Possible Congressional Roles Concerning Program Evaluation | p. 15 |
Making Program Evaluation Policy | p. 17 |
Scrutinizing and Learning from Program Evaluations | p. 19 |
Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs) | p. 21 |
Internal Validity | p. 23 |
External Validity | p. 25 |
Construct Validity | p. 27 |
Evaluation Quality | p. 29 |
Practical Capabilities and Limitations of RCTs | p. 31 |
RCT Capabilities | p. 33 |
RCT Limitations | p. 35 |
RCTs in Context: Program Evaluation and Systematic Review | p. 37 |
Study Quality: A Hierarchy of Evidence? | p. 39 |
Systematic Review in Health Care | p. 41 |
Systematic Review in Social Science-Related Areas | p. 43 |
Recent Attention to Using RCTs in Program Evaluation | p. 45 |
Controversy in Education Policy: A Priority for RCTs? | p. 47 |
Authority Cited for the ED Priority: NCLB and "Scientifically Based Research" | p. 49 |
Reactions to the Priority | p. 51 |
Implications and Related Developments | p. 53 |
Assessing Programs in the Budget Process: The PART | p. 57 |
Use of the PART | p. 59 |
RCTs and the PART | p. 61 |
Judging "Success" | p. 65 |
Potential Issues for Congress | p. 69 |
Issues When Directing or Scrutinizing RCTs | p. 71 |
Considering Study Parameters | p. 73 |
Scrutinizing, or Prospectively Assessing, Studies' Internal and External Validity | p. 77 |
Issues When Directing or Scrutinizing Program Evaluations | p. 81 |
What Types of Evaluations Are Necessary? | p. 83 |
What Definitions and Assumptions Are Being Used? | p. 85 |
How Should Congress Use Evaluation Information | p. 87 |
How Much Confidence Should One Have in a Study in Order to Inform One's Thinking and Decisions | p. 89 |
Do Agencies Have Capacity and Independence to Properly Conduct, Interpret, and Objectively Present Program Evaluations? | p. 91 |
Glossary of Selected Terms and Concepts | p. 93 |
References | p. 101 |
Index | p. 123 |
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