Most significant change

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Most Significant Change (MSC) was originally developed by Rick Davies in 1993 as a means of participatory impact monitoring. The first use of MSC on a large scale was by CCDB (Christian Commission for Development in Bangladesh), a Bangaldeshi NGO. The MSC approach involves the collection and "systematic participatory interpretation" of stories of change. This method of monitoring is a qualitative approach that does not rely on quantitative indicators. It has been widely used in the monitoring of aid projects throughout the developing world but its use is also expanding into government and corporate areas as the value of a dialogue based technique becomes appreciated.

A description of the first use of MSC is available in Davies' 1995 paper . A more in-depth description of the theory behind the method is available in his 1998 Ph.D thesis. The use of MSC was also the focus of a PhD thesis by Jess Dart, who has widely promoted the use of MSC in Australia.

There is a global emailing list of 450+ people who share information on the use of MSC. The website associated with the mailing list has a file repository of about 30+ folders with documentation of the use of MSC by a range of organisations in various countries around the world since 1993.

Latest development: The ‘Most Significant Change’ (MSC) Technique: A Guide to Its Use produced by Rick Davies and Jess Dart in late 2004 is now available in .pdf format (1.2MB)

Software development: Zahmoo is creating tools to support Most Significant Change. Also check out the Zahmoo blog