Qualitative Evaluation Audits in Practice

Abstract

Among the continuing challenges naturalistic evaluators face is the practical need for defensible conclusions. Guba and Lincoln's external evaluation audit represents one response to this need. In this article, we share our firsthand experiences with such audits, including the evaluation context and the audits'purpose, procedures, and findings. From these experiences, we offer suggestions for future audit practice and discuss several controversies surrounding the audit concept. We conclude with the call for further discussion on these and other controversies, but also with an interim consensus that the audit represents a viable metaevaluative tool for enhancing the internal quality, the external defensibility, and thus the stature and utilization of naturalistic evaluation.