Program evaluation for social workers: foundations of evidence-based programs

Now in its seventh edition, this comprehensive text once again provides beginning social work students and practitioners with a proven, time-tested approach to help them understand and appreciate how to use basic evaluation techniques within their individual cases (case-level) and the programs where they work (program-level). As with the previous six editions, this text is eminently approachable, accessible, straightforward, and most importantly, practical.

Revised editon of Program evaluation for social workers, 2012.

Preface -- Preparing for evaluations -- Introduction -- Approaches and types of evaluations -- The process -- Standards -- Ethics -- Cultural competence -- Designing programs -- The program -- Theory of change and program logic models -- Implementing evaluations -- Preparing for an evaluation -- Needs assessments -- Process evaluations -- Outcome evaluations -- Efficiency evaluations -- Making decisions with data -- Data-information systems -- Making decisions -- Evaluation toolkit -- Tool a. hiring an external evaluator -- Tool b. working with an external evaluator -- Tool c. reducing evaluation anxiety -- Tool d. meeting evaluation challenges -- Tool e. using common evaluation designs -- Tool f. budgeting for evaluations -- Tool g. using evaluation management strategies -- Tool h. data collection and sampling procedures -- Tool i. training and supervising data collectors -- Tool j. effective communication and reporting -- Tool k. developing an action plan -- Tool l. measuring variables -- Tool m. measuring instruments -- Glossary -- References -- Credits -- Index.