Recently published in the interdisciplinary journal Global Health Action, Assistant Professor Dr Marco J Haenssgen in Global Sustainable Development discusses and exemplifies how common evaluation criteria used in international development aid can encourage more transparent and balanced assessments of public engagement with research.

Public engagement has been heavily promoted in health research, but the lack of consistent evaluation criteria undermines our understanding of its intended and unintended consequences. This paper introduces the generic evaluation criteria of effectiveness, efficiency, impact, relevance, and sustainability and applies them to public engagement. The use of these established concepts can make evaluations more comprehensive and balanced, and ultimately help develop the evidence base of public engagement in global health. Dr Haenssgen illustrates the application of these criteria through the case of public engagement activities of a recent interdisciplinary research project on drug resistance, which included village-level workshops in Thailand and Laos, international photo exhibitions of Thai traditional healing in Thailand and the UK, and outreach through social and traditional media.

To access the full article, see here.