Guide to the Evaluation of Psychosocial Programming in Emergencies

UNICEF has developed this Guide to the Evaluation of Psychosocial Programming in Emergencies to assist UNICEF, its partners and other organizations working in the field of psychosocial support in thinking through key issues in planning and implementing an evaluation. Evaluation is a vital tool for improving current psychosocial programs as well as future planning, programming and decisionmaking. Evaluation provides the means to improve program performance and build inter-agency consensus on good and promising practices. Essentially, the wider impact of well-documented, reliable evaluations will be the building of a stronger knowledge base for good psychosocial practice. This guide focuses on the evaluation of psychosocial programs that are aligned with two main goals: – To promote psychosocial wellbeing by promoting an environment that provides appropriate care, opportunities for development and protects children from exposure to situations that are harmful to their psychosocial wellbeing, and – To respond to psychosocial problems by strengthening social and psychological supports for children who have been exposed to situations that affect their psychological development.