Accountability in Action?: Program Evaluation in Nonprofit Human Service Agencies

Abstract Program evaluation can be used as an excellent tool to promote nonprofit human service organizations' accountability. This article lays out several conditions that need to be met before evaluation achieves its potential. Application of this framework to nonprofits in Dallas, Texas, indicates the usefulness of the approach. Results show that considerable numbers of evaluation are being conducted but that the quality of the research methods and measures is low. This indicates that evaluation cannot currently be said to be providing the level of accountability possible. Additional efforts by all stakeholders to promote the use of evaluation to hold agencies accountable for efforts and results are necessary.