Multi-view SDI Assessment Framework

When developing Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDI) initiatives it is increasingly important to assess their outcomes in order to justify the resources spent on those infrastructures. Many researchers throughout the world have been struggling with the issue of assessing SDIs. The task is difficult due to complex, dynamic and constantly evolving nature of SDI. As SDI can be treated as a Complex Adaptive System, the assessment should include strategies for evaluating those kinds of systems. One strategy is to use multiple assessment approaches and methods. The general evaluation research and experience provide additional motives for adopting such a strategy. We present the multiview framework for assessing SDI initiatives around the world, and argue that the strength of this assessment design lies in its flexibility, its multidisciplinary view on SDI and a reduced bias in the assessment results. The multi-view framework contains methods that not only evaluate SDI performance, but also deepen our knowledge about SDI functioning, and may assist in its development. The article presents the assessment framework and describes its theoretical grounding in complexity theory and evaluation research. The application of the framework is beyond the scope of this paper.