Multiple Evaluation Methods

Evaluation should be considered at the beginning of a health promotion plan. When developing your plan of action, consider how you want to evaluate the programs. By designing your evaluation plan early, you'll be sure to collect the right kind of information.
  • Formative
    Formative Evaluation, including pre-testing, is designed to assess the strengths and weaknesses or materials or campaign strategies before implementation. Formative research tailors the program to the target audience. Messages or products are tested by a small group before they are implemented on a large scale. This type or evaluation permits necessary revisions before the full effort goes forward. Its basic purpose is to maximize the change for program success before the activity starts.

  • Process (also called "methods")
    Process evaluation examines the procedures and tasks involved in implementing a program. This type of evaluation also can look at the administrative and organizational aspects of the program. Process evaluation monitors the program to ensure feedback during the course of the program

  • Outcome (also called "bridging objectives")
    Outcome evaluation is used to obtain descriptive data on a project and to document short-term results. Task-focused results are those that describe the output of the activity (e.g., the number of public inquiries received as a result of a public service announcement). Short-term results describe the immediate effects of the project on the target audience (e.g., percent of the target audience showing increased awareness of the subject). Information that can result from an outcome evaluation includes:
    • Knowledge and attitude changes
    • Expressed intentions of the target audience
    • Short-term or intermediate behavior shifts
    • Policies initiated or other institutional changes made

  • Impact (also called "outcome objectives")
    Impact evaluation is the most comprehensive of the four evaluation types. It is desirable because it focuses on the long-range results of the program and changes or improvements in health status as a result. However, impact evaluations are rarely possible because they are frequently costly and involve extended commitment. Also, the results often cannot be directly related to the effects of an activity or program because of other (external) influences on the target audience, which occur over time. Information obtained from an impact study may include:
    • Changes in morbidity and mortality
    • Changes in absenteeism from work
    • Long-term maintenance of desired behavior
    • Rate or recidivism

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See also > Center for Health Promotion > Health Promotion and Chronic Disease