This chapter recasts evaluation use in terms of influence and proposes an integrated theory that conceptualizes evaluation influence in three dimensions—source, intention, and time.

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Examining evaluation theory in cultural context is an important component of evaluating theory; however, it is not the ultimate goal. The foundational element in good evaluation is validity, and appreciating the cultural location of evaluation theory is an important building block in the argument supporting multicultural validity. Multicultural validity requires congruence between theory and context. This article first addresses validity as the foundational aspiration of all evaluation, then moves to a succinct discussion of culture. Suggestions for reflecting on the cultural location of evaluation theory and cultural dimensions of context are described, illustrated by three different approaches to establishing cultural congruence—Indigenous Evaluation Framework (IEF), Talent Development (TD) Model, and Utilization-Focused Evaluation (UFE). Closing comments return to validity as the fundamental prize and to the centrality of culture in supporting it.

Context grounds all aspects of indigenous evaluation. From an indigenous evaluation framework (IEF), programs are understood within their relationship to place, setting, and community, and evaluations are planned, undertaken, and validated in relation to cultural context. This chapter describes and explains fundamental elements of IEF epistemology and method and gives several examples of these elements from evaluations in American Indian communities. IEF underscores the importance of putting context ahead of method choice and suggests that context exerts an even greater impact than previously recognized.

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