Includes bibliographical references and index.

Foreword -- Acknowledgements -- Readers' guide -- Introduction -- Editor's bios -- Dealing with complexity in development evaluation : a framework -- Complexity in development evaluation : the framework of the book / Michael Bamberger, Jos Vaessen and Estelle Raimondo -- Towards more complexity-responsive evaluations : overview and challenges / Estelle Raimondo, Jos Vaessen and Michael Bamberger -- Management of complexity responsive evaluations / Michael Bamberger -- Dealing with complexity in development evaluation : methodological approaches -- Impact evaluation approaches and complexity / Jos Vaessen, Estelle Raimondo and Michael Bamberger -- Understanding what is being evaluated : theory-based evaluation / Frans Leeuw -- Five practical evaluation problems to which tbe can contribute / Frans Leeuw -- Dealing with complexity by unpacking and reassembling elements of a complex -- Program / Estelle Raimondo, Michael Bamberger and Jos Vaessen -- The importance of a mixed methods [MM] approach for evaluating complexity / Michael Bamberger -- Emerging data and innovative techniques to deal with complexity in development evaluation -- Complexity in review and synthesis studies / Jos Vaessen -- Emergent technologies and creative use of multiple sources of information / Susan van den Braak, Sunil Choenni and Michael Bamberger -- Applying emergent technologies to complex program evaluations from the INGO perspective / Kerry Bruce and Alison Koler -- The evaluation of complex development interventions in the age of big data / Emmanuel Letouz, Ana Areias and Sally Jackson -- Dealing with institutional complexity : implications for evaluation design, process and use / Estelle Raimondo -- Gender equality in development evaluation : the intersection of complexities / Estelle Raimondo and Michael Bamberger -- Complexity of evaluation in practice : case studies -- A case study in complexity : evaluating a long-term effort to prevent gender-based violence in El Salvador / Allison Davis and Melida Guevera -- Microcredit and women's empowerment : complexity in systematic review / Jos Vaessen, Ana Rivas and Frans Leeuw -- Evaluation of coordination against trafficking in persons : a case study of a complex evaluation / Kim Forss -- Complexity from the perspectives of philanthropic foundations and their evaluation / Leny van Oijen -- Dealing with complexity in a realist synthesis : community accountability and empowerment initiatives / Gill Westhorp, Bill Walker and Patricia Rogers -- Contributor bios -- Glossary of technical terms.

Recognizing that complexity calls for innovative, conceptual, and methodological solutions, Dealing with Complexity in Development Evaluation by Michael Bamberger, Jos Vaessen, and Estelle Raimondo offers practical guidance to policymakers, managers, and evaluation practitioners on how to design and implement complexity-responsive evaluations that can be undertaken in the real world of time, budget, data, and political constraints. Introductory chapters present comprehensive, non-technical overviews of the most common evaluation tools and methodologies, and additional content addresses more cutting-edge material. The book also includes six case study chapters to illustrate examples of various evaluation contexts from around the world.