Provides detailed guidance for professionals working in human services or youth-and-family-serving organizations in the measurement of outcomes, defined as the benefits or changes to an individual or populations as a result of participation in a given program. For example, a program in financial management could have as desired goals a family’s ability to develop and live within a budget and to achieve increased financial stability. Chapters cover: (1) the basics of outcome measurement; (2) preliminaries to outcome measurement, including assembling a work group, defining terms, limitations, and expectations, selecting a program, and developing a timeline; (3) steps in selecting outcomes to measure, including constructing a logical model; (4) indicators, or measurable characteristics that represent achievement, of an outcome; (5) identification of data sources and data collection methods; (6) instruments for tracking and collecting data as well as monitoring the measurement process; (7) data analysis and reporting; (8) how to improve an outcome measurement system; (9) internal and external use of outcomes findings; and (10) issues in developing data collection instruments and procedures, including record extraction forms, questionnaires, and trained observer ratings. The manual also contains numerous examples, sample forms, charts, and worksheets as well as a bibliography.
