Abstract
Simply put, and most unfortunately, current interpretations and applications of the Theory of Change concept have drifted so far from their origins as to render them useless. As inflammatory a statement as that may appear to be, it is also the single biggest and most annoying elephant in the development world’s room. And as the development world continues to shift focus from solely philanthropic and development finance funding to self-funded social enterprises and the very trendy impact investing, this elephant has grown well beyond the confines of that room.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
Weiss, C.H., 1997 How can Theory-Based Evaluation Make Greater Headway Evaluation Review: A Journal of Applied Research Vol 21 (4): 24 – Aug 1 pp. 501–524.
- 2.
Rogers, P.J., 2007 Theory Based Evaluations: Reflections Ten Years On, New Directions for Evaluation, no 114 Summer, Wiley Periodicals Inc DOI: 10.1002/ev.225
- 3.
Weiss, C.H., 1997 How can Theory-Based Evaluation Make Greater Headway Evaluation Review: A Journal of Applied Research Vol 21 (4): 24 – Aug 1, pp. 501–524.
- 4.
Nederveen Pieterse, J., 2010 Development Theory: Deconstructions/Reconstructions Chapter 1: Trends in Development Theory pp. 2–3. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781446279083.n1
- 5.
Goodland, R., Ledec, G., Neoclassical economics and principles of sustainable development, Environmental and Scientific Affairs, Projects Policy Department, The World Bank, Washington, DC 20433, U.S.A. DOI: doi.org/10.1016/0304-3800(87)90043-3
- 6.
Nederveen Pieterse, J., 2010 Development Theory: Deconstructions/Reconstructions Chapter 1: Trends in Development Theory p. 5. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4135/9781446279083.n1
- 7.
Kothari, U., & Minogue, M. (2002). Development Theory and Practice: Critical Perspectives. Basingstoke: Macmillan Publishers Ltd. ISBN: 0333800710
- 8.
Aiken, C.B., Keller, S.P. 2007 The CEOs Role in Leading Transformation website: McKinsey February 2007 available at: https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/organization/our-insights/the-ceos-role-in-leading-transformation
- 9.
Nohria, N., Beer, M., 2000 Cracking the Code of Change, Harvard Business Review May-June 2000 Issue available at: https://hbr.org/2000/05/cracking-the-code-of-change
- 10.
Saltzman, J. 2018 How CEOs can inspire social change within their organizations Forbes Councils August 29 available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesnycouncil/2018/08/29/how-ceos-can-inspire-social-change-within-their-organizations/#256636116052
- 11.
Folkman, J., 2018 Measuring Engagement Does Not Improve It, Forbes March 13 2018 available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/joefolkman/2018/03/13/measuring-engagement-does-not-improve-it/#73436273775f
- 12.
Brunetto, Y., Teo, S.T.T., Shacklock, K., Farr‐Wharton, R., 2012 Emotional intelligence, job satisfaction, well‐being and engagement: explaining organisational commitment and turnover intentions in policing in Human Resource Management Journal 22(4) November 2012 DOI: 10.1111/j.1748-8583.2012.00198.x
- 13.
Friere, P., (2000) Pedagogy of the Oppressed (30th anniversary ed.) New York: Continuum.
- 14.
The Barr Center, The Barr Model available at: https://barrcenter.org/strategies
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2021 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Vun, G. (2021). Analysing the Credibility of Theories of Change. In: Wendt, K. (eds) Theories of Change. Sustainable Finance. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52275-9_3
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-52275-9_3
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-52274-2
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-52275-9
eBook Packages: Economics and FinanceEconomics and Finance (R0)