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…

Examines the role of prototype case studies as the foundation for later evaluation through two studies from the "R&D Value Mapping Project," a study that will involve more than 30 cases. Explores the usefulness of case studies in defining and assessing subsequent research efforts. (SLD)

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)

Using a case study approach, it is argued that evaluators play a critical role as change agents in foreign assistance projects directed at building Third World organizations. Evaluators affect stakeholder issues, commitment to project objectives, judgments of project accomplishments, consensus among project implementors, and perspective of…

Six case studies are discussed, which illustrate the experimental and pragmatic epistemological paradigms as they function independently, compete with one another, or complement each other. Researchers should consider not only the substantive goals of an evaluation, but also the epistemological goals. (SLD)

Studied the efforts of a state-funded evaluation support unit in Rhode Island to increase evaluation capacity in 13 community-based organizations through a needs assessment, on-site technical assistance, a workshop series, and selected model projects. Measures of organizational needs, staff confidence, and agency progress are used to document…

Procedures and benefits of a modular approach developed to evaluate the Texas Nutrition Education and Training Program are illustrated. It is shown that meta-analysis and similar summarizing methods create a comprehensive evaluation to improve operations and support planning and development. (SLD)

Two case studies, a study of retention of health care personnel and a study of internal organizational communication, are presented that illustrate the application of multidimensional unfolding (MDU) and mapping to organizational concerns. This approach to multivariate analysis allows clients and stakeholders to picture the results of complex…

Proposes a model to enable programs in applied or professional psychology to clarify and refine their missions through the curricula they generate. A case example illustrates the model's application in acceptance and implementation of recommended curriculum changes in Rutgers University's Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology.…