Purposeful program theory: effective use of theories

Between good intentions and great results lies a programme theory — not just a list of tasks but a vision of what needs to happen, and how. Widely used in government and not-for-profit organisations, programme theory provides a coherent picture of how change occurs and how to improve performance.

This book shows how to develop, represent, and use programme theory and theories of change in different ways to suit a particular situation. It looks at how to address complicated and complex aspects of programmes in terms of: focus; governance; consistency; necessariness; sufficiency; and change trajectory. The reading is valuable to practitioners, programme designers, evaluators, policy analysts, funders, and scholars who want to understand why an intervention works or doesn't work.