Improving evaluation in the prevention of violent extremism is everyone’s business! An international exploratory study

Evaluation in the field of extremism prevention is one of the great challenges of our time. We know very little about the effectiveness of prevention programs and the factors that explain their successful implementation. Evaluation seems difficult, if not impossible, given the many limitations associated with prevention programs on a very sensitive topic.

This is why the UNESCO-PREV Chair decided to document, through an international study, the experiences, challenges and learnings of actors involved in evaluations of programs and practices in the prevention of violent radicalization and extremism in 9 Western countries.

A total of 54 participants were interviewed, including 32 researchers/evaluators, 19 practitioners and 3 government representatives from Belgium, Canada, England, Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and the United States.

One of the main conclusions of this study is that collaboration among the various actors is probably the key factor in the success of the evaluation.

 

Article by Pablo Madriaza-Manriquez

Crédit Photo: Chaire UNESCO-PREV