As a new member to this list, I want to take a moment for an introduction. My name is Jeffrey Sheldon presently, a Ph. D. candidate based in the US (School of Behavioral and Organizational Sciences, Claremont Graduate University, The Claremont Colleges, Claremont, California) and am in the process of designing my dissertation study on empowerment evaluation and its relationship to self – determination. Earlier in my career, I worked with noted community psychologist Abraham Wandersman at the University of South Carolina in the areas of substance abuse prevention and early childhood school readiness accountability, and worked in community development around the issue of child abuse and neglect prevention. My other work includes mental health research and evaluation, patient satisfaction with psychological services evaluation, applied research on HIV/Aids in South Africa, and research on informal afterschool science programming.

Beyond introducing myself, I am posting to this list in search of members who are evaluators and applied researchers in the UK (and beyond) who have used, or are using an empowerment evaluation approach (i.e., the three – step process, the ten –step Getting to Outcomes process, or some variation thereof) in their work with communities, local organizations, or local programs. Given criticisms of the empowerment evaluation approach, I have developed a new measure for use by empowerment evaluators and applied researchers in their work that, potentially, can help determine the extent to which the ten empowerment evaluation principles have been adhered to as an indicator of participant empowerment and self-determination.

As such, though the membership, I would like to access a sample of respondents who have participated in, or are participating in an empowerment evaluation under the guidance/coaching of an empowerment evaluator or applied researcher. Initially I thought that the sample should include only individuals currently engaged in an empowerment evaluation, but Dr. David Fetterman, who is consulting on this study, suggested I include those who have been past participants to increase sample size and power.

To date, the anticipated response burden for participants will include the as yet to be named empowerment evaluation measure, a brief measure of social desirability, a brief empowerment measure, and a brief self –determination measure. I have also developed an evaluator survey that includes items on the evaluation process, the evaluation context, and working relationship with participants. Demographic data will be asked of both participants and evaluators; anonymity will be assured.

Given this is a very rough sketch of the study and a lot of information for an initial post, if you would like to know more, are interested in being part of this study, have suggestions about this study, know evaluators and applied researchers I should contact, or have other ideas, please email me at:
 
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That said, I want to thank David and Grant for their assistance in connecting me to this community. Likewise, I am most appreciative for your time and consideration, and look forward to a dialogue regarding empowerment, self – determination, and evaluation/applied research.

Cheers,

Jeffrey Sheldon, M. A., Ed. M.

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