Evaluation Fundamentals: Insights Into the Outcomes, Effectiveness, and Quality of Health Programs is for students and professional evaluators who want to answer the following questions: Was this program or intervention effective? Who among the program's participants benefited most? For how long can the program's impact and outcomes be sustained? What are the reasons for the program's successes and failures? Now in its Second Edition, the book contains an added emphasis on outcomes, effectiveness, and quality of evaluations. Author Arlene Fink teaches the basic concepts and vocabulary necessary to do program evaluations and to review the quality of evaluation research so as to make informed decisions about methods and outcomes. Among the topics the book covers is how to justify evaluation questions and set standards of effectiveness, design studies, and conduct ethical research. The book contains numerous examples of evaluation methods as well as evaluation reports. It also includes practice exercises and suggested readings in print and online.

Table of Contents:
PREFACE PROGRAM EVALUATION: A PRELUDE Purpose of this Chapter A Reader′s Guide to Chapter 1 What Is Program Evaluation? Users and Doers of Evaluations The Composition of Evaluation Baseline Data, Interim Data (Formative Evaluation), and Process Evaluations Qualitative Evaluation Participatory and Community-Based Evaluations Evaluation Frameworks and Models Ethical Evaluations Research Misconduct A Note about The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPPA) Summary and Transition to Chapter on Evaluation Questions and Standards of Effectiveness Exercises Suggested Readings EVALUATION QUESTIONS AND STANDARDS OF EFFECTIVENESS Purpose of this Chapter A Reader′s Guide to Chapter 2 Evaluation Questions Setting Standards of Effectiveness: What they are and How to State Them How to Set Standards Evaluation Standards and Economic Evaluations Evaluation Questions and Standards: Establishing a Healthy Relationship When to Set Standards The QSV Report: Questions, Standards, Variables Summary and Transition to Next Chapter on Evaluation Research Design Exercises Suggested Readings DESIGNING PROGRAM EVALUATIONS Purpose of this Chapter A Reader′s Guide to Chapter 3 Evaluation Design: Creating the Structure Questions to Ask When Designing Evaluations Dealing with Six Questions A Classification of Program Evaluation Designs Internal and External Validity Evaluation Design Report: Questions, Standards, and Independent Variables Summary and Transition to Next Chapter on Sampling Exercises Suggested Readings SAMPLING : CHOOSING THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE NEEDED FOR EVALUATING EFFECTIVENESS Purpose of this Chapter A Reader′s Guide to Chapter 4 What is a Sample? Inclusion and Exclusion Criteria or Eligibility Methods of Sampling Sampling Unit Sample Size Why Sample? The Sampling Report Summary and Transition to Next Chapter on Information Collection Exercises Suggested Readings COLLECTING INFORMATION: THE RIGHT DATA SOURCES Purpose of this Chapter A Reader′s Guide to Chapter 5 Information Sources: What′s the Problem? Choosing the Best Source of Data Sources of Data in Program Evaluation and Their Advantages and Limitations Reasons for Evaluators′ Use of the Literature Summary and Transition to the Next Chapter on Evaluation Measures Exercise: Collecting Information: The Right Data Sources Suggested Readings EVALUATION MEASURES Purpose of this Chapter A Reader′s Guide to Chapter 6 Reliability and Validity A Note on Language and Evaluation Measures Checklist for Creating a New Measure Checklist for Selecting an Already Existing Measure The Measurement Chart: Logical Connections Summary and Transition to the Next Chapter on Managing Evaluation Data Exercises Suggested Readings MANAGING EVALUATION DATA Purpose of this Chapter A Reader′s Guide to Chapter 7 Data Management: The Road to Data Analysis Drafting an Analysis Plan Creating a Codebook Searching for Missing Data Entering the Data Cleaning the Data Creating the Final Dataset for Analysis Storing and Archiving the Dataset Exercises Suggested Readings ANALYZING EVALUATION DATA Purpose of this Chapter A Reader′s Guide to Chapter 8 A Suitable Analysis: Starting With the Evaluation Questions Measurement Scales and Their Data Selecting a Method of Analysis Hypothesis Testing, P Values, and Confidence Intervals: Statistical and Clinical or Practical Significance Clinical or Practical Significance: Using Confidence Intervals Proceed With Caution: Screening and Transforming Data Risks and Odds Qualitative Evaluation Data: Content Analysis Meta-Analysis: A Superanalysis of Evaluation Data Summary and Transition to the Next Chapter on Evaluation Reports Exercise Suggested Readings EVALUATION REPORTS Purpose of this Chapter A Reader′s Guide to Chapter 8 The Written Evaluation Report Written Evaluation Reports: What Should They Include? Reviewing Your Report Oral Presentations Exercise Suggested Readings ANSWERS TO EXERCISES INDEX ABOUT THE AUTHOR