Valutazione, etica e giustizia sociale

The essay argues that evaluation can be a space for critical thinking that assumes criteria for judging public policies that are alternative to those present in neoliberal politics. In the history of evaluation, there are methodological orientations and theoretical reflections that look at the ability of evaluation to promote social justice by assuming judgment criteria that consider the interests of less privileged groups as priorities and look at the ability of the evaluated programs to promote the equal access to civil liberties, human rights and opportunities. For this to be achieved, it is important to reflect more on the ethics of the evaluator, but also to promote their empowerment in the relation with stakeholders, ensuring substantial independence of the evaluation exercise and strengthening the professional and scientific status of the evaluator.