Josiah Kaplan

This website, written in the context of transportation policy, is of use to any investigator looking for step-by-step guidance on the cost-benefit analysis process.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) online guide offers a detailed and interactive introduction to the cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) process. The guide covers the following:

This web page gives detailed guided assistance in creating rubrics.

This World Bank volume offers detailed guidance on the use of Small Area Estimation poverty maps in research and policy making. Information, guidance and tools are organised around the following broad themes:

Prepared by the Innovation Network, this workbook offers a “do-it-yourself guide” to the development and use of a range of logic models, including step-by-step description of the process required for th

This webpage from Keystone Accountability outlines the six major reasons that social organizations monitor, assess and report their performance and results.

This chapter from the University of Kansas Work Group for Community Health and Development 'Community Toolbox' contains a detailed overview of logic models and theory of change development relevant to the related construction of the realist

The World Cafe website offers several free tools for supporting the set-up and facilitation of a World Cafe session. The following tools are available for download on the World Cafe website:

Developed by Geoff Parcell and Chris Collison in their book No More Consultants: We Know More Than We Think, “The River Diagram” is a useful tool designed for visualising the results of self-assessment and peer-learning data from multiple s

Interviews are conversations between an investigator (interviewer) and a respondent (‘interviewees’, ‘informants’ or ‘sources’) in which questions are asked in order to obtain information.

Stratified random sampling is a probabilistic sampling method, in which the first step is to split the population into strata, i.e. sections or segments.

Multi-stage sampling represents a more complicated form of cluster sampling in which larger clusters are further subdivided into smaller, more targeted groupings for the purposes of surveying.

The world café is a methodology for hosting group dialogue which emphasizes the power of simple conversation in considering relevant questions and themes.

Cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA) compares the relative costs of the outcomes of two or more courses of action and is considered an alternative to cost-benefit analysis (CBA). 

Logframes are a systematic, visual approach to designing, executing and assessing projects which encourages users to consider the relationships between available resources, planned activities, and desired changes or results.

A ‘reputation monitoring dashboard’ allows users to monitor and quickly appraise reputational trends at a glance and from a variety of different sources.

Card visualization is a participatory method for capturing data that uses paper cards to allow groups to brainstorm and share their ideas.

The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are a set of time bound and quantified goals and targets developed to help track progress in eradicating poverty. 

Propensity score matching (PSM) is a quasi-experimental method used to estimate the difference in outcomes between beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries that is attributable to a particular program.

Hierarchical card sorting (HCS) is a participatory card sorting method designed to provide insight into how people categorise and rank different phenomena.

A simple random sample (SRS) is the most basic probabilistic method used for creating a sample from a population.

Sequential sampling is a non-probabilistic sampling technique, in which the sample size, n, is not fixed in advanced, nor is the timeframe of data collection.

The “round robin” method is a technique for generating and developing ideas in a group brainstorming setting.

This method compares the total costs of a programme/project with its benefits, using a common metric (most commonly monetary units), which enables you to calculate the net cost or benefit associated with the programme. 

Demographic mapping is a way of using GIS (global information system) mapping technology to show data on population characteristics by region or geographic area.

A realist matrix focuses on the causal mechanisms at work in a programme or project. It specifies what exactly in the programme creates the outcomes, and under what conditions.

A rubric is a framework that sets out criteria and standards for different levels of performance and describes what performance would look like at each level.

The Six Thinking Hats method encourages participants to cycle through six different ways of thinking, using the metaphor of wearing different conceptual “hats”.

Open Space Technology (OST) is a group facilitation approach for small and large gatherings in which a central purpose, issue, or task is addressed, but which begins with a purposeful lack of any formal initial agenda.

A questionnaire is a specific set of written questions which aims to extract specific information from the chosen respondents.