Seite - (000253) - in Evaluating Climate Change Action for Sustainable Development

13.3 RealistApproach Thismeta-analysiswasconductedusingaphilosophical lenscalledcritical realism. In evaluation, the realist approach emphasizes underlying assumptions about the waycertain interventionsareexpectedtoyieldcertainoutcomesinacertaincontext (Pawson and Tilley 2004). It thus defies the deterministic worldview which is symbolizedas“ifXhappens, it automaticallyproducesoutcomeY.”Sucha linear, sequential worldview is considered deterministic or positivistic, in that hypothe- sized theoriesofchangeare thought towork regardlessof thecontextwithinwhich theoriesofchangearesituated. Inotherwords,deterministic theoryofchangedoes notgiveus theexplanationsas to“forwhomsuch interventionsmaywork, inwhat circumstances, andhow” (PawsonandTilley1997).Moreover, although thedeter- ministic findings can tell uswhat interventionsmayhaveworked in certain coun- tries under certain conditions (“there”), they may not tell us for whom these successful interventions are expected to work, under what circumstances, and how (“here”). The realist approach thus resonates with evidence-based policy making in that it is thought to be useful in answering the important evaluation question, i.e. “it worked there, but will it work here?” (Cartwright and Hardie 2012). The following sections, however, first present the results of themeta-analysis that are considered deterministic in nature, immediately followed by non-deterministic ones and how the realist approach is applied. The intention behind this structure is to emphasize the characteristics of critical realismphilos- ophy. Deterministic findings appear to help evaluators to knowwhether certain interventions work or not for achieving key outcomes, but such a deterministic approach iswhat a realist approach attempts to defy. The realist approach belongs to the school of theory-based evaluation (Stern etal. 2012).The realist approach isbasedonaschoolof thought inaphilosophyof science, called critical realism. The concept of critical realism has been most significantly developed by Roy Bhaskar.4 Critical realism can provide a useful lens especially in social sciences for the world that is “structured, differentiated, stratifiedandchanging,”andrecognizes theshiftofemphasis“towhatproduces the events–not just to theevents themselves.” (Danermarket al. 2002).Anevaluation approach based on critical realism is thus an “intuitively appealing approach to those trying to expose and unpack the complexities of contexts and interrelated mechanisms underlying implementation activity” (Rycroft-Malone et al. 2012). The use of this evaluation approach is thus considered appropriate in the complex experience ofCCAprojects.Adoptionof critical realism in evaluationfield (prin- cipally inpublichealthandcriminology)has significantlyprogressed thanks to the workofPawson(2013),Pawsonetal. (2004),PawsonandTilley (1997,2004),and Wonget al. (2013) andother scholars. 4His most notable works include The Possibility of Naturalism (1979) andARealist Theory of Science (2008). 13 WhatDoEvaluationsTellUsAboutClimateChangeAdaptation?Meta-analysis. . . 239