Different Forms Of Evaluation Research Articles

Devices of evaluation: Institutionalization and impact—Introduction to the special issue

AbstractThis introduction outlines the analytical potential of the concept of ‘device’ that is key to the special issue ‘Devices of evaluation’. Evaluation relies not only on the human capacity to value, classify, compare, or judge, but also on social operators that affect evaluations in different ways. The notion of ‘devices’ puts the focus not on human actors but on things, tools, and instruments, on (infra-)structures and procedures, on assemblages and constellations which human actors either draw on when they attribute value or worth, or which have their own agentic capacity and facilitate or enforce evaluations themselves. We propose three perspectives through which a focus on devices can have analytical potential and thus contribute to the study of evaluation in academia: Devices facilitate and accomplish evaluation as trans-situational relays, they connect different forms of evaluation, and they enable, guide, and shape comparisons among very different valuation constellations and contexts. Broadening the focus in this way, the concept can improve our understanding of the non-human side of evaluation. The contributions to this special convey the idea that devices of evaluation are crucial for understanding the production, diffusion, and institutionalization of value and worth in academic contexts.

Doctor-patient bilateral matching considering diagnosis and treatment perception in the absence of public health resources.

The public health crisis is one of the main threats affecting the sustainable development of the economy and strengthening the rational allocation of medical resources is essential for building a strong public health system. Therefore, the study of the doctor-patient bilateral matching has important theoretical and practical significance and perception of diagnosis and treatment is taken as a key consideration in the research. Based on the current situation of the medical industry and the main contradiction between supply and demand of medical services, an evaluation index of doctor-patient satisfaction is constructed in this paper. Then, based on the different forms of evaluation, calculate the doctor's satisfaction and patient's satisfaction respectively. Taking maximizing the overall satisfaction of doctors and patients, maximizing the number of patients and minimizing the workload difference between doctors as the decision-making objectives, considering the upper limit of doctors' working hours as the constraint condition, a multi-objective decision-making model is constructed and solved by NSGA-II algorithm to realize the matching between doctors and patients. Finally, through the comparison with NSGA-III algorithm in three dimensions: the degree of convergence to the reference set, the propagation range of the solution and the running time of the algorithm, it is proved that NSGA-II algorithm has good performance in solving the matching problem of medical service supply and demand.

The antecedents, regulation and maintenance of anger on the road: A qualitative investigation on the factors influencing driver anger and aggression

Aggressive driving behaviour (ADB) is an ongoing road safety issue that has proven difficult to deter. The purpose of this study was to: qualitatively investigate the antecedents of ADBs, document the self-regulatory processes and metacognitive beliefs associated with ADBs, and explore how metacognitive facets might influence the progression and expression of anger. An online sample of Queensland (Australia) motorists who had recently engaged in ADBs (N = 34) were interviewed and inductive thematic analysis was applied to the response data. The results showed that firstly, ADBs were primarily triggered by discrepancies in drivers’ mentality. Several perceptual, situational, internal and experiential factors were found to influence the likelihood and severity of the response to the triggering behaviour. Trait aggressive drivers tended to have lower perceptions of risk, and resistance to deterring events (e.g., fines; near misses). The self-regulation of ADBs appeared to be contingent on participants’ metacognitive awareness to recognise when their behaviour was being influenced by anger, and the ability to utilise appropriate cognitive-behavioural regulatory strategies when required. Following ADBs, participants reported different forms of evaluation, including anger, depressive, fearful, and reflective rumination styles, and these processes were perceived to influence future driving behaviours in different ways. However, trait aggressive drivers in particular tended to demonstrate a lack of evaluation following ADBs. The findings of this study may provide a framework for future research applying the concept of self-regulation to the topic of ADB and may also help inform road authorities of alternative and effective approaches for reducing driver aggression.

Experience of nurses in assessing postoperative pain in hip fracture patients suffering from dementia in nursing homes.

Aim To explore the experiences of registered nurses in assessing postoperative pain in hip fracture patients suffering from dementia in nursing homes. Methods The study was designed as a qualitative study using data from a self-reported questionnaire form. Data were collected through the self-administered questionnaire with 23 questions, mainly addressing demographic and social data, information about communication and pain assessment. Results All nurses reported that large part of verbal communication with dementia patients was lost, and non-verbal communication was very important to optimize the care of these patients in postoperative situations. An assessment of pain in patients with dementia and hip fractures was a complex process because cognitive ability of these patients was reduced. Conclusion Registered nurses need to know various and different forms of evaluation and tools to assess the experience of pain in patients with dementia who had undergone surgery for hip fractures. This is a complicated task, which requires a great deal of time, and means that nurses must work together with other medical staff, using a holistic approach.

İlişkisel Bir “Dünya” Olarak Sanat ve Nesnenin Yeni Estetik Deneyimde Bozulumu

The position of art in its juxtaposition of progress and development can be historically brought back to the position of its object in the context of its ideological and iconological discussion. The distortion of the art object in the aesthetic experience is not about the subject, but about the expectation that the art object establishes the art world among different forms of evaluation as the object of an evaluation act. The jurisdiction of criticism cannot be put forward at this point, and cannot be talked about, as a result of its relevance to its ontological and epistemological bases. With all its experienced actors, the world of art is not a world of aesthetic experience with appreciation. In this study, how the object of art is distorted in aesthetic experience in the new art world created by the relevance of art will be handled from the perspective of Shusterman.

“Hard to Beat Dickens’ Characters”: Non-Canonical Syntax in Evaluative Texts

AbstractThe present paper focuses on non-canonical syntactic constructions in the language of evaluation. It explores in which ways and under which conditions certain syntactic constructions deviating from the unmarked SVX pattern can support the expression of the writer’s/speaker’s attitude. The study is based on a corpus of academic and non-academic book reviews (published online and in print in scientific journals of different disciplines and on the cataloguing websiteGoodreadsrespectively). It-extrapositions, existentialtheresentences, andwh-clefts contained in the corpus were analysed not only as to the evaluations expressed within them but also as to other parameters, including the occurrence of different forms of evaluation, the mention of specific sources or participating roles of evaluation as well as information structure.

Habitat suitability modelling of rare species using Bayesian networks: Model evaluation under limited data

Paucity of data on rare species is a common problem, preventing the use of most approaches to model development and evaluation. This study demonstrates how models can be developed and different forms of evaluation can be performed despite a lack of sufficient data, by presenting a habitat suitability model for the rare Astacopsis gouldi, the giant freshwater crayfish. We use a Bayesian network approach that readily incorporates incomplete data and allows for the evaluation of uncertainties. To supplement the limited field data on A. gouldi, expert knowledge was elicited through surveys designed to provide probability values that described the strength of relationships between the habitat suitability of the species and three variables – elevation, upstream riparian condition and geomorphic condition – and credible intervals around those values. A series of 18 alternative models were developed based on the same model structure but parameterised using different sources – expert judgement, field data or a combination of the two. The models were evaluated by estimating and comparing their performance accuracy and sensitivity analysis results, and in assessing the assumptions underpinning each of the models. Using performance accuracy as a measure, the data-based and combined expert- and data-based models performed better than the expert-based models. The sensitivity analysis results show that geomorphic condition was the most influential variable in the majority of models and that elevation had minimal influence on the occurrence of A. gouldi. Overall the models were found to have large predictive uncertainties, although the modelling process itself revealed insights into the habitat suitability of the species and identified key knowledge and data gaps for future monitoring, management and research.

Gender bias and explanation models for the phenomenon of women’s discriminations in research careers

In the present paper four myths of gender differences in scientific performance are presented and discussed. The persistence of these myths in different forms of evaluation is influencing the women's discriminations in research careers in combination with effects explained in other explanation models for the existence of the unseen barrier (glass ceiling) that keeps women from rising to the upper levels of the corporate ladder.

Methods for the Aesthetic Evaluation of Breast Cancer Conservation Treatment: A Technological Review

Breast-conserving approaches aim to attain better aesthetic results in addition to local control and achieving survival rates equivalent to mastectomy in patients with breast cancer. While the oncologic outcome of breast conserva- tion procedures is easily estimated objectively by disease-free and overall survival rates, the cosmetic outcome has no standard of evaluation. Although breast conservation techniques have been widely studied, different forms of evaluation and heterogeneous working practices have contributed to different aesthetic results. As this scenario suggests, the evalua- tion of aesthetic results should be mandatory in any institution performing breast cancer treatment, contributing to the im- provement of current strategies by enabling the identification of variables which have a significant impact on the final aes- thetic result. In the process of assessing cosmetic outcomes there are several important issues that should be considered: which factors have a crucial impact on the cosmetic outcome of Breast Cancer Conservation Treatment (BCCT); which parameters or features should be evaluated in the cosmetic assessment of BCCT; how patients are evaluated; which scales are used in this evaluation; which methods and technological solutions are available for the evaluation of cosmetic results of BCCT. In this paper we try to discuss all these questions, with an emphasis on the objective methods and corresponding tech- nologies used in the aesthetic evaluation of BCCT. The most relevant publications related to the mentioned topics are pre- sented, critically analysed and put in chronological perspective. Current and future trends are also discussed.

Outcomes and process in reading tutoring

Background: Large-scale randomised controlled trials are relatively rare in education. The present study approximates to, but is not exactly, a randomised controlled trial. It was an attempt to scale up previous small peer tutoring projects, while investing only modestly in continuing professional development for teachers. Purpose: A two-year study of peer tutoring in reading was undertaken in one local education authority in Scotland. The relative effectiveness of cross-age versus same-age tutoring, light versus intensive intervention, and reading versus reading and mathematics tutoring were investigated. Programme description (if relevant): The intervention was Paired Reading, a freely available cross-ability tutoring method applied to books of the pupils’ choice but above the tutee's independent readability level. It involves Reading Together and Reading Alone, and switching from one to the other according to need. Sample: Eighty-seven primary schools of overall average socio-economic status, ability and gender in one council in Scotland. There were few ethnic minority students. Proportions of students with special needs were low. Children were eight and 10 years old as the intervention started. Macro-evaluation n = 3520. Micro-evaluation Year 1 15 schools n = 592, Year 2 a different 15 schools n = 591, compared with a comparison group of five schools n = 240. Design and methods: Almost all the primary schools in the local authority participated and were randomly allocated to condition. A macro-evaluation tested and retested over a two-year period using Performance Indicators in Primary Schools. A micro-evaluation tested and retested within each year using norm-referenced tests of reading comprehension. Macro-evaluation was with multi-level modelling, micro-evaluation with descriptive statistics and effect sizes, analysis of variance (ANOVA) and multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA). Results: Macro-evaluation yielded significant pre–post gains in reading attainment for cross-age tutoring over both years. No other differences were significant. Micro-evaluation yielded pre–post changes in Year 1 (selected) and Year 2 (random) greater than controls, with no difference between same-age and cross-age tutoring. Light and intensive tutoring were equally effective. Tutoring reading and mathematics together was more effective than only tutoring reading. Lower socio-economic and lower reading ability students did better. Girls did better than boys. Regarding observed implementation quality, some factors were high and others low. Few implementation variables correlated with attainment gain. Conclusions: Paired Reading tutoring does lead to better reading attainment compared with students not participating. This is true in the long term (macro-evaluation) for cross-age tutoring, and in the short term (micro-evaluation) for both cross-age and same-age tutoring. Tutors and tutees benefited. Intensity had no effect but dual tutoring did have an effect. Low-socio-economic status, low-ability and female students did better. The results of the different forms of evaluation were indeed different. There are implications for practice and for future research.

Outcomes in a randomised controlled trial of mathematics tutoring

Background: Large-scale randomised controlled trials (RCT) are relatively rare in education. The present study was an attempt to scale up previous small peer tutoring projects, while investing only modestly in continuing professional development for teachers. Purpose: A two-year RCT of peer tutoring in mathematics was undertaken in one local education authority in Scotland. The relative effectiveness of cross-age vs same-age tutoring, light vs intensive intervention, and mathematics vs mathematics + reading tutoring was investigated. Programme description: The intervention was Duolog Math, a freely available tutoring method for working with mathematical problems, involving discussion following eight structured steps and including summarising and generalising at the end. Sample: Eighty-six primary schools in one council in Scotland of average socio-economic status. Children were of mixed ability and mixed gender, with few ethnic minorities or special needs in relation to background population. Macro-evaluation n = 3520. Micro-evaluation Year 1 n = 334, Year 2 n = 447 cf. comparison group n = 85. Design and methods: Almost all the primary schools in the local authority participated and were randomly allocated to condition. A macro-evaluation tested and retested using Performance Indicators in Primary Schools over a two-year period. A micro-evaluation tested and retested within each year using a criterion-referenced test of mathematical problem solving. Macro-evaluation was with multi-level modelling, micro-evaluation with descriptive statistics and effect sizes; ANCOVA and MANOVA. Results: Macro-evaluation yielded significant pre–post gains in mathematics attainment for cross-age tutoring in randomly allocated classes over both years. No other differences were significant. Micro-evaluation yielded pre–post gains for selected schools in Year 1, but no overall gains for randomly allocated schools in Year 2 compared with comparisons. However, Year 2 girls, mathematics-only groups and less able students did gain significantly. Conclusions: Duolog Math tutoring does lead to gains in mathematics attainment compared with students not participating, but only for cross-age tutoring and girls, mathematics-only groups and less able mathematicians. Effectiveness varies according to type of tutoring (cross-age being better) and type of school (selected schools being better), but not intensity of tutoring. The results of the different forms of evaluation were indeed different.

Evaluating qualitative management research: Towards a contingent criteriology

The term qualitative management research embraces an array of non‐statistical research practices. Here it is argued that this diversity is an outcome of competing philosophical assumptions which produce distinctive research perspectives and legitimate the appropriation of different sets of evaluation criteria. Some confusion can arise when evaluation criteria constituted by particular philosophical conventions are universally applied to this heterogeneous management field. In order to avoid such misappropriation, this paper presents a first step towards a contingent criteriology located in a metatheoretical analysis of three modes of qualitative management research which are compared with the positivist mainstream to elaborate different forms of evaluation. It is argued that once armed with criteria that vary accordingly, evaluation can reflexively focus upon the extent to which any management research consistently embraces the particular methodological principles that are sanctioned by its a priori philosophical commitments.

Improving the quality and effectiveness of computer‐mediated instruction through usability evaluations

AbstractBrigham Young University's Center for Instructional Design (CID) creates online courses and multimedia instructional applications for university faculty. This paper asserts that including usability testing as a part of evaluation improves the quality and effectiveness of computer‐mediated instruction. The paper describes the fundamental purpose and functions of usability testing, and also distinguishes between different forms of evaluation: accessibility, quality assurance (QA), usability and implementation. Through a detailed case study, we describe how usability testing improved the quality of a computer‐based chemistry course and facilitated a clearer analysis of the learning effectiveness of this course.

Evaluating the educational impact of visualization

The educational impact of visualization depends not only on how well students learn when they use it, but also on how widely it is used by instructors. Instructors believe that visualization helps students learn. The integration of visualization techniques in classroom instruction, however, has fallen far short of its potential. This paper considers this disconnect, identifying its cause in a failure to understand the needs of a key member in the hierarchy of stakeholders, namely the instructor. We describe these needs and offer guidelines for both the effective deployment of visualizations and the evaluation of instructor satisfaction. We then consider different forms of evaluation and the impact of student learning styles on learner outcomes.

The Budapest initiative for Open Access

Scholarly publication is in a crisis : partially dominated by commercial interests in the form of oligopolies which don't have a great concern for scientists needs, the Republic of Sciences has been transformed into a scientific plutocracy where different forms of elitism and exclusion reign. The cost of scientific journals is by now out of range of the great part of the world and the less rich institutions in rich Countries. There are some palliative efforts like OSI eIFL. But against the intrigues of oligopolies, few solutions exist. Little commercial enterprises or learned societies with modest financial ambitions leave you in a sceptical attitude. The only feasible solution is to go at the base of the topic of scholarly publications and to build publication processes which answer in the best possible way to the needs of scientists, to the needs of research managers and to the needs of patrons and public requirements which support the great part of the world fundamental research. For scholarly communication, the best way to accomplish these different purposes is to put itself into open access, re-working the stages and the meanings of the different forms of evaluation which must accompany these communication flows. Society Institute, like other philantropic organizations, takes clearly sides in the field of open access scientific communication. The textual version of this speech at the Conference Open Access to Scientific and Technical Information: State of the Art and Future Trends was published in Information Services and Use vol. 23 (2003), issue 2-3, p. 171-173.

Basic, Applied and Technological Research:

Our purpose in this paper is to offer an historical account of the relationship between basic, applied and technological research, as found in a case study of the Institute of Research in Applied Mathematics and Systems (IIMAS) at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). We found that researchers who have dedicated themselves full-time to the development of technology related to computing science have, in their academic careers, faced a system of evaluation based upon an ideal of basic science: this results in an adverse environment for the development of technological research; and this, in turn, has negative consequences for basic research itself, as the achievements of basic and experimental science cannot be understood nowadays without any active collaboration between technology and theory. The concepts which give rise to the different forms of evaluation at UNAM resulted more from a value-ridden symbolic construction, than from the processes of the actual production of new knowledge.

Evaluating organizations: A systems and contingency approach

It has become increasingly difficult to keep pace with the amount of information being generated about how to evaluate organizations. If it were not enough that the situation is made difficult by the sheer mass of material on evaluation, clarity is further hindered by many of the publications on the subject failing to make explicit the principles and assumptions upon which they are based. This was the situation confronting the authors when they began a national project with the National Association of Councils for Voluntary Service on the evaluation of the performance of Councils for Voluntary Service. In an attempt to bring some order to the field, this paper adopts a systems and contingency approach to elucidate the nature and practical usefulness of the different methods of evaluation. It first seeks, using some tools of Checkland's soft systems methodology, to present a systematic analysis of the subject of evaluation. Then, in the light of the analysis, an attempt is made to formulate a simple classification of approaches to evaluation which serves to match the different forms of evaluation to the contexts in which they are most appropriate for use.

Allocating Resources

This article reviews the methods of economic evaluation of health technology. The different forms of evaluation are outlined and the importance of assessing costs and benefits at the margin stressed. The approaches used by economists to analyze priorities for health technologies are discussed and a number of key managerial and policy issues identified. It is concluded that, while further methodological improvements can be made, a clear methodology for economic evaluation of health technologies has been established. However, attention needs to be paid to the timeliness and relevance of economic evaluation in order to ensure its maximum impact.