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Evaluating “Effectiveness” under the Policy on Results

Ardyn Nordstrom

Canadian Public Administration2026https://doi.org/10.1111/capa.70053article
AJG 1
Weight
0.50

What the paper says

Evaluation units provide essential information for administrators of public programs. Canada's 2016 Policy on Results emphasizes evaluating “effectiveness,” with a focus on outcomes. However, it is unclear if evaluation units use this or more implementation‐oriented definitions in practice, which has implications for the information evaluations will provide. This study examines 370 evaluation reports published by the largest federal departments to determine how evaluation functions are approaching effectiveness, using a combination of text mining and manual thematic analysis. Since 2014, evaluation reports have increasingly adopted implementation‐oriented approaches, with variations across departments. Explanations for these patterns are discussed, along with policy implications.

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https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/capa.70053

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@article{ardyn2026,
  title        = {{Evaluating “Effectiveness” under the Policy on Results}},
  author       = {Ardyn Nordstrom},
  journal      = {Canadian Public Administration},
  year         = {2026},
  doi          = {https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/capa.70053},
}

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Evaluating “Effectiveness” under the Policy on Results

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Evidence weight

0.50

Balanced mode · F 0.40 / M 0.15 / V 0.05 / R 0.40

F · citation impact0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20
M · momentum0.50 × 0.15 = 0.07
V · venue signal0.50 × 0.05 = 0.03
R · text relevance †0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20

† Text relevance is estimated at 0.50 on the detail page — for your query’s actual relevance score, open this paper from a search result.