Component design

Component design is an approach to mixed methods evaluation that conducts qualitative components of the evaluation separately to quantitative components and then combines the data at the time of report writing.  

Sometimes these components relate to different data sources (for example, qualitative data from key informant interviews, and quantitative data from a questionnaire with closed questions), and sometimes to different aspects of the overall evaluation (for example, qualitative data about context and processes and quantitative data about outcomes and impacts).

Advice for choosing this method

This method is often less useful than using an integrated design, where the different types of data are used to inform other data collection, analysis and interpretation. Evaluations sometimes end up using a component design because the evaluation is being conducted by separate teams whose work is poorly integrated.

Caracelli V J, Greene J C, (2004). Crafting Mixed-Option Evaluation Designs, New Directions For Evaluation, Vol. 1997:74. Retrieved From https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/ev.1069

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