A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE HISTORY OF EVALUATION RESEARCH NOTES THE CONTINUITY OF DEVELOPMENT IN THE EVALUATION FIELD; IT IS OBSERVED THAT EVALUATION RESEARCH HAS BECOME A POLITICAL ACTIVITY; I.E., AN INPUT INTO POLICY DECISIONS. EXAMPLES OF POLICY-RELEVANT EVALUATION RESEARCH ARE CITED. THREE TYPES OF EVALUATION RESEARCH -- PROCESS EVALUATION, IMPACT EVALUATION, AND COMPREHENSIVE EVALUATION -- ARE DISCUSSED. THE GENERAL FAILURE OF SYSTEMATIC EVALUATION STUDIES TO IDENTIFY POLICY-SIGNIFICANT PROGRAM IMPACTS IS POINTED OUT. THE NEED FOR MORE CONCEPTUAL THINKING CONCERNING THE UTILITY OF DIFFERENT ROLES AND ORGANIZATIONAL RELATIONS FOR EVALUATION RESEARCHERS IS NOTED. THE STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF VARIOUS APPROACHES TO EVALUATING PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION AND OUTCOME ARE EXAMINED. SUGGESTIONS FOR IMPROVING THE STATE OF THE ART IN EVALUATION RESEARCH ARE COVERED, IT IS OBSERVED THAT THE SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION AND UTILIZATION OF EVALUATION RESEARCH IN POLICYMAKING, PLANNING, AND PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION IS INHIBITED MORE BY POLITICAL AND CONTEXTUAL PROBLEMS (RESOURCE CONSTRAINTS, ADMINISTRATIVE BARRIERS, ETC.) THAN BY METHODOLOGICAL PROBLEMS. A LIST OF REFERENCES IS INCLUDED. (LKM)