This paper investigates the role of evaluation commissioning in hindering the take-up of complexity-appropriate evaluation methods, using findings from interviews with 19 UK evaluation commissioners and contractors. We find, against a backdrop of a need to ‘do more with less’ and frustration with some traditional approaches, the commissioning process is perceived to hinder adoption of complexity-appropriate methods because of its inherent lack of time and flexibility, and assessment processes which struggle to compare methods fairly. Participants suggested a range of ways forward, including more scoping and dialogue in commissioning processes, more accommodation of uncertainty, fostering of demand from policy users, more robust business cases, and more radical overhauls of the commissioning process. Findings also emphasised the need to understand how the commissioning process interacts with the wider policy making environment and evidence culture, and how this manifests itself in different attitudes to risk in commissioning from different actors.

中文翻译：

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调试过程如何阻碍采用适合复杂性的评估？

本文利用对 19 位英国评估专员和承包商的采访结果，调查了评估委托在阻碍采用适合复杂性的评估方法方面的作用。我们发现，在需要“少花钱多办事”和对一些传统方法感到沮丧的背景下，调试过程被认为阻碍采用适合复杂性的方法，因为其固有的缺乏时间和灵活性，以及​​评估过程努力公平地比较方法。与会者提出了一系列前进的方向，包括在委托过程中进行更多的范围界定和对话、更多地适应不确定性、促进政策用户的需求、更强大的商业案例以及对委托过程进行更彻底的改革。