The Role of Theory, Research, and Evaluation in Adventure Education

Abstract

Some of the present approaches for studying adventure education are based on grounded theory, folk pedagogies, and existing social science theory. These approaches share some problems, including: (a) an overemphasis on outcomes without specifying processes, (b) a misunderstanding of how different types of evaluation contribute to theory, and (c) under-theorized evaluation and program models. As an alternative, program theory evaluation, which focuses on a “theory-program-outcome” model, in which all three components are specified simultaneously, can help avoid these mistakes while contributing a more sophisticated understanding of how programs have effects.