Logical Framework (Logframe)
Summary
The Logical Framework, or logframe, is a widely used monitoring concept and a standard requirement for funding applications for development-related projects. Like the Theory of Change it has its origins in 1960s programme theory. Its continued popularity for project planning and monitoring is derived from its perceived simplicity, allowing for the provision of a concise overview of an intervention (American Evaluation Association, nd) with a four-by-four matrix. That simplicity and apparent objectivity has however also attracted much criticism, as being 鈥渁pplied in an over-standardized, rigid and top-down manner鈥�, thus 鈥渙ften failing to reflect the messy realities facing development actors鈥� (USAID, 2012: 2).
The challenge for transdisciplinary research projects is to distil the complexity of the proposed project meaningfully into the logframe matrix while leaving enough flexibility for the open-endedness of research. The literature included in this part of the resource bank takes a critical view and provides suggestions that might trigger reflexive processes and discussions on how to adapt and use the logframe to enhance your research project.