For more than 20 years, the system of care philosophy has comprised a central strategy of service reform in children's mental health at the federal, state, tribal, and local levels. System of care terminology has become widely used in many different service sectors but often without a shared understanding of what a system of care is. This…

There are many psychosocial interventions for children and adolescents. The effects of these interventions in day-to-day practice are nevertheless often unclear. Researchers typically take the randomized controlled trial (RCT) as the "gold standard" for the supply of evidence regarding the effectiveness of an intervention. However, such trials are…

Activities during the initial 18-month cycle of the Demand and Resource Evaluation (DARE) Program of the Puget Sound Power and Light Company (Washington State) are described. The role of evaluation in public utility planning is discussed. Cooperation, communication, and consensus among utility planning staff are concluded to be vital. (SLD)

Presents an early stage evaluation model that was used to provide a framework to assess the effectiveness of three comprehensive community initiative projects that were put in place in Nebraska in 1996. Discusses challenges of evaluating these broadbased initiatives and pitfalls in using result-based performance evaluation. (SLD)

Presents a comprehensive evaluation framework and applies it to a family empowerment program in Montana that was developed as an aspect of welfare reform. The framework encompasses seven areas from developing objectives to developing a sound conceptual framework. (SLD)

In the evaluation of a major university's effort to extend its resources in support of volunteer development, the program decisionmakers' involvement went beyond the usual limits. The program advisory council participated in the design of data collection instruments and the interviewing of clients. The advantages and disadvantages are described.…

Shows how evaluators can handle conflict and create, restore, and maintain conditions for an ongoing negotiation process using the example of a vocational rehabilitation project for psychiatric patients in which a conflict developed between management and therapists. (SLD)

Introduces the Outcome-Asset Impact Model, a tool that combines elements of client-centered outcomes and asset orientations with a systems approach. The application of this model to the evaluation of program interventions is illustrated through three case studies: (1) a multiple objective urban revitalization initiative; (2) an early intervention…

The use of case-control methodology as an applied policy/planning research tool in assessing the potential effectiveness of behavioral interventions is studied in connection with diarrhea control in Zaire. Results with 107 matched pairs of children demonstrate the importance of hygiene-related knowledge and the utility of the research approach.…