Success Case Method Theory in Practice: Findings from Interviews with Robert O. Brinkerhoff

Abstract Information: The success case method (SCM) has been developed over the course of four decades and, as an evaluation approach, has received great attention in the training and development community, but also in other disciplinary domains. However, the theoretical premises have not been explicitly defined for evaluation practice. In this study, we first examined the pertinent SCM literature considering SCM use in training evaluation and other impact evaluation contexts. Second, we conducted in-depth interviews with Robert O. Brinkerhoff, the originator of the approach. Findings from the study were categorized according to the evaluation practice classification framework from the Garden of Evaluation. Guiding questions included: What is the philosophical orientation of the SCM? What methods are preferred and used? How are values identified? How are findings being valued? What is the SCM’s stance toward activism for social justice? How are evaluation contexts considered? To what extent does the SCM evaluation promote the use of findings? Who is engaged in the evaluation process, and in what ways and what depth? What are the usual power dynamics in making evaluation decisions? Findings from the interview will be presented in the shape of a flower that illustrates SCM evaluation practice. Snapshots from the video interviews will be integrated as part of the presentation.

Relevance Statement: Historically, evaluation models and approaches have been developed by practitioners who were thrown into evaluation practice. If a given evaluation approach filled a need in each program community, its practice took off. An example of this is the Success Case Method (Brinkerhoff, 2003) which grew out of experiential learning in educational evaluation (personal conversation with Brinkerhoff). While the SCM has been widely practiced, books have been published, and certifications have been offered over decades, not all practice dimensions have been adequately communicated to date. To that end, we conducted a series of recorded video interviews with the originator of the method to document the philosophical and methodological orientation, and dimensions of good SCM practice. Specifically, we used the practice dimensions put forth in the Garden of Evaluation (Montrosse-Moorhead, Schroeter, & Becho, 2023), including values; valuing; activism for social justice; context; promoting use; who is engaged in the evaluation process and at what depth; and power dynamics in making evaluation decisions. Each dimensions is illustrated as a flower petal culminating in a lower that can be located in the broader garden of evaluation (see https://osf.io/mkxgc/). As such, this study illustrates how the Garden of Evaluation can be used to formulate evaluation practice with the goal of facilitating learning and comprehension among practitioners. This paper is one of the first examples, illustrating how the garden of evaluation can be used to delineate evaluation theory and to fill gaps in the landscape of evaluation and at the same time integrate oral history to further development of the field of evaluation. Historically the SCM has been frequently used to the trainings story (Brinkerhoff, 2005). This study contributes to telling the story of SCM theory in practice. References Brinkerhoff, R. O. (2003). The success case method: find out quickly what’s working and what’s not. San Francisco, CA: Berret-Koehler Publishers, Inc. Brinkerhoff, R. O. (2006). Telling Training's Story: Evaluation Made Simple, Credible, and Effective. San Francisco, CA: Berret-Koehler Publishers, Inc. Montrosse-Moorhead, B., Schroeter, D., & Becho, L. (2023, March 16). The Garden of Evaluation Approaches. https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/MKXG