Keywords
philanthropy, access, human rights, evaluation frameworks, governance, nonprofit accountability, systems design
Abstract
This thought paper examines how philanthropic evaluation frameworks misclassify access to basic human rights as a preliminary step rather than a complete outcome. In competitive funding environments, post-access behavioral metrics such as utilization and compliance are often elevated to outcome status and used to assess program worthiness. Drawing on rights-based and systems-level evaluation frameworks, the paper argues that access itself constitutes a sufficient and legitimate outcome, and that post-access data should function as program management inputs rather than legitimacy or financial thresholds. Reframing access as the outcome has implications for philanthropic accountability, administrative burden, and the ethical consistency of funding decisions.
BYU ScholarsArchive Citation
Zabriskie, Stephanie, "Access Is the Outcome: Rethinking Metrics, Worthiness, and Human Rights Across Philanthropy and Development" (2026). Faculty Publications. 8324.
https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/facpub/8324
Document Type
Peer-Reviewed Article
Publication Date
2026-01-16
Language
English
Copyright Use Information
https://lib.byu.edu/about/copyright/
Figure 1 – Conceptual diagram illustrating access as an outcome delivered through system coherence conditions.
AAO SCC Illustrative Application System Conditions.png (2408 kB)
Figure 2 - Illustrative framework showing post-access behaviors as emergent effects of coherent systems.