Evaluating the psychosocial components of a humanitarian project

The author describes the evaluation of the activities of a group of psychosocial workers in Internally Displace Person camps and resettlement areas. These psychosocial activities were offered as an addition to a programme aimed at improving the living conditions of the target group by building shelters and livelihood programmes. The approach of the psychosocial workers was based on intuition and common sense, but not on an explicit view on the objectives of their interventions and the connection between these objectives and the methods they were using. During interviews and a workshop these matters were discussed, and thus an ‘intervention logic’ could be made explicit, including some verifiable indicators for the effect of each of the psychosocial activities and some combinations of activities. It also became clear which possibilities were available to improve the quality of the psychosocial activities, by training the psychosocial workers in regard to skills and insights they, so far, were not using. This report, therefore, shows what kind of psychosocial activities can be effective when integrated in programmes aimed at improving the physical life environment.