Descriptor
| Error Patterns | 2 |
| Program Evaluation | 2 |
| Statistical Data | 2 |
| Administrative Problems | 1 |
| Bias | 1 |
| Data Collection | 1 |
| Disclosure | 1 |
| Information Dissemination | 1 |
| Measurement Objectives | 1 |
| Research Problems | 1 |
| Social Indicators | 1 |
| More ▼ | |
Source
| Evaluation Quarterly | 2 |
Author
| Cochran, Nancy | 2 |
Publication Type
Education Level
Audience
Location
Laws, Policies, & Programs
Assessments and Surveys
What Works Clearinghouse Rating
Cochran, Nancy – Evaluation Quarterly, 1978
Distortion of data is caused by purposeful, goal-oriented activity of people who produce data, as well as by attempts to cheat or manipulate social service delivery systems. Failure to recognize a constructive motivational component is attributed to an over-reliance on positivism in the social sciences. (Author/CTM)
Descriptors: Administrative Problems, Error Patterns, Information Dissemination, Program Evaluation
Cochran, Nancy – Evaluation Quarterly, 1978
Distortion and selective disclosure limit data that are available to program evaluators, producing a bias that tends to maintain the status quo. Paradoxically, attempts to objectify the data only increase the potential for distortion. Ironically, one way to encourage innovation may be to not measure it. Additional solutions are suggested.…
Descriptors: Bias, Data Collection, Disclosure, Error Patterns
