Question

What ae the differences between monitoring and evaluation of criminal justice policies?

Answer 1

• Criminal justice agencies constantly conduct policy changes due to events that occur throughout any department. Policy monitoring creates a indication of policy effectiveness through measurement data. Monitoring a policy involves data collection and maintenance from programs that produce feedback reports.
• Policy Monitoring policies allows the gathering of factual information as to the causes and outcomes of criminal justice policies. For policy monitoring to be effective the information gathered must be relevant, reliable, and valid. Policy monitoring provides data on compliance, auditing, accounting, and outcomes of criminal justice policy. Policy monitoring further allows for the verification that policy goals and objectives are being met.
• In comparison to monitoring, evaluation is normally the last step in the policy process. Policy evaluation goes through a series of questioning of how the policy identified and implemented the desired effect and the possibility of modifications to produce efficiencies.
• For example, during an evaluation, data collected is in constant use from previous monitoring. In monitoring, emphasis is placed on results and processes that are derived from procedural implementation.