Evidence claims for informing decisions relating to socio-economic development

Abstract

The Centre of Excellence for Development Impact and Learning (CEDIL) develops and tests innovative methods for evaluation and evidence synthesis. Claims made in CEDIL studies are intended to inform socio-economic development in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), or research about LMICs. This paper provides an overview of how, in CEDIL-funded studies, claims arising from research (termed ‘evidence claims’ for brevity) have been justified and communicated in order to inform policy decisions relating to socio-economic development. This study addresses two important questions about research that is designed to produce findings for decision makers. First, how are the claims that arise from the findings justified? In other words, what are the criteria (evidence standards) that studies use, explicitly or implicitly, in order to justify their evidence claims? Second, how are those claims and justifications communicated in original research reports and other outputs that share the research more widely?

Making and justifying evidence claims: evidence synthesis of impact evaluations and systematic reviews in international development

“…In a preliminary Lessons Learnt paper, analysis of claims made in CEDILcommissioned studies led to tentative findings about the nature of evidence claims, and how they were justified and communicated (Oliver et al, 2023). The findings are summarised briefly here, before we set out to apply them to a wider literature:…”

“…In preparation for the current study, we explored debates and practices among the authors of CEDIL-commissioned studies (Oliver et al, 2023). We describe that work briefly here.…”

“…In contrast, explicit empirical claims, which are more often justified by arguments for methodological innovation, may well cluster around the more challenging policy fields or under-resourced or fragile settings that have a shorter history of academic attention. To address these shortcomings, in our preparatory work (Oliver et al, 2023), we develop a framework (Figure 3) that emphasises the following: the demand for research that strengthens confidence in the evidence claims that matter most for decision-making (as recommended in the CEDIL workshop); and the values and perspectives of decision makers, not only researchers (as recommended by Gough (2021)). The core tasks in the framework begin with articulating evidence needs and engaging stakeholders.…”

“…• The review is novel, addressing important impact research questions about evidence claims and how these claims are justified. It builds on the conceptual framework of developing, justifying and communicating claims proposed by the Lessons Learnt paper examining the CEDIL-commissioned projects (Oliver et al, 2023). This current review potentially enhances transparency and enables future research to explore evidence claims and evidence standards for research addressing broader review questions beyond impact.…”