BigCat Research

What quantitative and qualitative evidence is supporting the change?

Change becomes reliable when the direction of quantitative indicators and the cause of qualitative narratives are read together.

Quantitative data shows the magnitude and prevalence of change; Qualitative data explains how this change occurred and why it occurred. One may be incomplete without the other. When only numbers are used, context is weakened, when only narrative is used, generalizability is limited. Good evaluation brings together two types of evidence within the same conclusion logic.

The quantitative and qualitative evidence supporting the change directly determines the reliability of the impact report. Counting activities is not enough to understand impact. The nature of the participation, the starting point of the target group, the quality of the implementation and how long the results last should be considered together.

This work should use a combination of survey results, attendance and follow-up records, beneficiary interviews, field notes, practitioner evaluations and documentary evidence. In such studies, the discipline of interpretation is as important as the language of measurement. A strong finding should be embraced, a limited finding should not be exaggerated, and the result requiring follow-up should be clearly stated.

Relying on a single type of evidence to describe change is often insufficient. This reading How the achieved impact should be translated into a simple, reliable and shareable narrative, To what extent has the program achieved its objectives and which follow-up indicators support this, Which activity, module, region or target group has the stronger result produced and Which assumptions were confirmed in the implementation process, which should be revised gives a more complete framework when juxtaposed with the headings; because each one makes another moment of the experience visible. Ultimately, evaluation should be a tool for learning and resource use, not a tool for polishing the program. This stance makes both the strong results and the missing areas more believable.

What does quantitative evidence convey?

Quantitative evidence shows how many people, at what level, and across what breakdown the change occurred. If there is a need for follow-up, this should not be written as a weakness. Some changes become meaningful not at the moment of closure, but when they turn into behavior or capacity a few months later.

This data is important for the scope and widespread impact of the program. The text constructed in this way both embraces the strong side and turns the missing point into an area to be improved without hiding it.

If the results differ between target groups, this difference should not remain as a side note of the report. Some groups may need more intensive support, some may need a different order of content, and some may need a longer follow-up period. This information directly affects resource usage.

What does qualitative evidence complement?