Impact evaluation draws methods from programme evaluation, social-science research, contribution analysis and case-study design. Approaches include counterfactual designs (where feasible), contribution analysis, theory-based evaluation, payback frameworks, and productive-interactions tracing. Funders increasingly require impact evaluation as part of grant closeout. The Research Impact Handbook, the LSE Impact Blog, and the Royal Society's impact toolkit are common reference resources.
References
- Mayne J 'Contribution analysis' Canadian Journal of Program Evaluation 2008. Reed M 'The Research Impact Handbook' 2016.