ABOUT
ROBIN LABARBERA, PhD, DSW
President, LaBarbera Research & Evaluation | Professor Emerita, Biola University
I work at the intersection of research, evaluation, and lived experience, helping organizations understand how their work contributes to human flourishing in complex social contexts.
A DIFFERENT APPROACH
Data, narrative, and lived experience...together.
This work integrates quantitative data with qualitative insight to understand not only where a program is working, but how and why change takes place. The goal is not to simply measure outcomes, but to understand the conditions that support human flourishing over time.
APPROACH
Rigorous, usable, and meaning-making
Mixed-methods
Combining quantitative data with qualitative insight for a fuller picture of program impact.
Integrated instruments
Survey design, interviews, and thematic analysis, alongside reporting that communicates both findings and meaning.
Actionable reporting
Work that is both rigorous and usable, supporting decision-making, strengthening programs, and clarifying impact.
EXPERIENCE
Three decades of evaluation in complex environments
Much of this work has focused on environments where change is difficult to measure but deeply significant -- including incarceration, reentry, and faith-based community programs. Published in Health & Justice, The Journal of Offender Rehabilitation, and Journal of Global Education and Research, with presentations at international conferences, including the British Society of Criminology
BEYOND THE REPORT
Social advocacy as part of the work
Evaluation in this practice is never just internal documentation. Results reach wider audiences through peer-reviewed articles, books, conference presentations, and media -- advocating publicly for the programs and populations that matter.
RESEARCH & WRITING
Grounded in the work
It's Changed What I'm Living For
Ethics Press, 2025
Based on a multi-year study of theological education in prison -- exploring identity, purpose, and human flourishing across six correctional facilities and 266 participants.
