The Evidence Checklist: how to make sure your evidence is high-quality

No one should understate the importance of making use of evidence when creating or critiquing policy. We’ve shared some of our favourite places to look for evidence for policy, but finding evidence is not all you need to do.

It’s vital that you check whether the evidence you’re using is trustworthy, timely and reliable. To help you do this we have put together a checklist to help you identify if evidence is worth your time or worthless.

Check the sample size

Was the study of a sufficient size and therefore can the results be trusted? It's always important to check the sample size when ensuring your evidence meets minimum scientific standards.

Is it a recent publication?

This will be relative to each policy area, but always remember to check when the evidence was published to see if the results are still relevant to what you are looking into.

Is the source reliable?

Are they well known and respected within the industry? Could they have a potential agenda behind the data? Always check who has conducted and funded the research to ensure that the data is unbiased.

Has the evidence been peer reviewed?

Peer reviewed work has been scrutinised by other experts within the industry and therefore more likely to be based upon a robust methodology.

Always consider the context

Remember to check whether the evidence for a policy intervention is relevant to your context. If the research in question is from a very different culture, demographic or political system, it may not have the vigour to be helpful within your own context.

Has there been any follow up from the study?

This may not be relevant for all evidence, but you can check whether there has been any follow up as a result of the study. Were the recommendations applied? Were there any follow up consultations? And if so, what were the results?

Thanks to participants on Apolitical’s How to use evidence in policymaking_ _ course for sharing their top tips for checking whether evidence is trustworthy.

👋 You can create a post like this one! Share your thoughts with a community of public servants. Learn more