Sustainable community health improvement often requires the implementation of complex interventions in complex systems. Drawing from the "Four Keys to Success" frame (theory, implementation, support, and evaluation), this article describes how we used a formative evaluation approach to foster a learning system capable of monitoring and…

Background: Previous interventions to increase physical activity among middle school students have not produced long-term results. Often, students lack the self-regulation skills needed to support long-term adherence to physical activity. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to conduct a formative evaluation of a self-regulation based physical…

Three models of evaluation emerge: objective and independent, objective but serving one interest, and pseudo-scientific public relations. Evaluation of an interdisciplinary mental health education program and roles must all be attended to or the weak link undermines the rest. (Author/RL)

In this study of the current state of evaluation of health programs, which emphasizes the relationship between health status and poverty, four health programs are examined: Family Planning, Neighborhood Health Centers, Migrant Health Programs, and Comprehensive Health Services for Children and Youth. The study shows that the current health…

The client-oriented cost outcome system provides feedback of the data generated by or for consumers for a program's service planning, delivery, quality control, and evaluation methods. The system's conceptual framework, necessary components, and applications for program evaluation are described. Available from: Pergamon Press, Maxwell House,…

Two case studies provide examples of citizen and program participant involvement in program evaluation. The Reflective Appraisal of Programs at Cornell Cooperative Extension involves volunteer interviewers of participants; the Lancaster County (Pennsylvania) Office of Mental Health/Mental Retardation is reviewed by a volunteer citizens' committee.…

Articles in this special issue consider different aspects of community-level evaluation research and demonstrate the emerging sophistication and promise of this field. Process evaluation, qualitative research, and meta-analysis are promising new directions for ensuring more appropriate levels of analysis and more appropriate outcomes. (SLD)

A multidisciplinary team model used at a child and adolescent mental health service in Norfolk (England) was evaluated. Team members represented three different professional backgrounds: practitioners, managers, and planners. Formative evaluation results suggest that it is possible to establish interprofessional teams able to integrate with…

The increasing sophistication of school health program evaluation procedures tends to parallel or reflect the development of the total school health program. (JD)

This paper describes a six-month service-coordination pilot project (SCPP) designed to improve coordination activities among mental health service providers in a Canadian city. The aim of the project was to improve information sharing and joint treatment planning. Data show no effect of the SCPP, but service providers perceived improvements. (TJH)

This presentation will report on the findings of the evaluation of Project SOBEIT a multi-school initiative focused on building partnerships between schools, law enforcement, and community mental health agencies. Guided by a process, context, outcomes, and sustainability framework and grounded in the understanding of the impact of change theory on…

This paper summarizes results of telephone interviews with key personnel at 19 (out of 22) agencies receiving grants under the Center for Mental Health Services program, one part of a 5-year evaluation study examining the impact that utilizing measurable outcomes has on service systems. This component focused on the conceptualization and…

This document reports on the comprehensive evaluation of the Georgia Life Skills for Mental Health program, a primary prevention program designed to provide students with the opportunity for learning basic intrapersonal and interpersonal skills to handle stress, respond to major life decisions, and form more satisfying interpersonal relations…

The monitoring process and the role of monitoring in mental health center decision making are discussed in relation to information systems. Monitoring requires an information system based on the center's annual plan for programs and budgets. This system must contain at least minimal data on client movement, services, staff activity, and costs. The…

This document contains the report of the preliminary analysis of data collected during site visits to Head Start centers conducted in the fall of 1980 as part of the Child And Family Mental Health (CFMH) Evaluation Project. The report is limited to data from two of the three components of the evaluation project -- the process component and the…