Addressing sponsor and stakeholder needs in the evaluation authorizing environment: Trends and implications

The editors make note of several trends and implications arising from the discussions in the earlier chapters, in particular, the need to recognize the complexity of evaluation contexts involving multiple sponsors and stakeholders. The significance of the multifaceted and complex environment for the conduct of evaluation in state and local government settings is noted, a summary of the historical context is provided, and a discussion of the importance of maintaining evaluator independence and objectivity when addressing the diverse needs of sponsors and stakeholders is included.