Integration of Results

After all measurements have been conducted, researchers usually have obtained a number of (independent) assessment results, i.e. one result per investigated impact area. There might be trade-offs and co-benefits. If the assessment was conducted to support a choice between multiple options, the assessment results need to be combined to determine  which option is objectively the best. This can be challenging.
While it is possible to end assessments by summarizing the individual results and to leave their normative interpretation to policy makers or society at large, there are also ways to the combine the results into integrated assessments. The BonaRes assessment platform provides information on the following methods:

 

 

Multicriteria Analysis (MCA)

Results for all impact areas are normalised, weights are assigned and overall scores are calculated. This method is well suited for selecting between different scenarios.

 

Framework of Participatory Impact Assessment (FoPIA)

This method is a subset of Multicriteria Analysis. In FoPIA, a workshop-based format is used, where the assigning of weights is done by stakeholders.

 

Benchmarking

This method is mainly used for evaluations of efficiency and for comparing a high number of cases. Because it is often uncertain what degree of efficiency can be realistically achieved, the assessment results are first used to identify best performance within the sample. All other cases are then scored relative to this benchmark.

 

Modelling

Results of impact assessments can be used in the design and improvement of models. Such models can help to understand processes or test effects of different interventions.