Probing and prioritizing the public policy Evaluation models

Policy evaluation has important functions in public policy and governance processes. However, Iranian researchers have paid less attention to this critical subject of study and as a result, the field has been relatively suffered from this inattention. This paper, attempts to answer this fundamental question: What are the criteria for assessing the desirability of an evaluation model and among the most popular models, which are more favorable?. In order to answer this question, we reviewed the eighteen prevalent evaluation models and placed them for examination by public policy experts. In this research sixteen academic and administrative experts specializing in policy evaluation, participated in a Delphi panel. Then, we used TOPSIS technique to analyze the experts opinions. Findings suggest that within the Iranian context, regardless of subject requirements, the Utilization-focused model and the Accountability evaluation model have the highest and lowest score respectively.