The case study addressed in this article illustrates the value of continuous response measurement (CRM) for testing and refining messages produced for distribution to Extension audiences. We used CRM to evaluate the responses of Extension educators and Natural Resources Conservation Service technical service providers to a video describing…

Raising evaluation capacity is not an easy task unless the evaluation competence of Extension professionals in each program area is identified. The study reported here identified whether level of knowledge and skills and needs for further training in program evaluation vary for Extension educators based on their program area. A total of 752…

This leadership education evaluation study explored the leadership development outcomes of potential county extension directors and the ways to improve the program. The leadership education program aimed to improve participants' leadership abilities in understanding self, building relationships and managing resources. The analysis of quantitative…

The primary purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of using email prompts to attenuate the decrease of physical activity in adults during a winter season. In addition, the secondary purposes were (1) to evaluate the effectiveness of email prompts at increasing motivation towards physical activity and (2) to evaluate the awareness…

The Reflective Appraisal of Programs (RAP) approach allows county extension staff (in cooperation with volunteer leaders, specialists, and district staff) to obtain systematic evidence on results that participants perceive to have occurred in the months or years following their involvement in an extension program. Simpler than a…

All Extension professionals employed by the Louisiana Cooperative Extension Service during the entire Fiscal Year 1971, a total of 378 employees, participated in a study to determine their attitudes toward working with low-income clientele. Data were collected by mail questionnaire, personnel records, and statistical reports from the employees. Of…

This study focused on determining the levels of objectivity of procedures used by agents of the Louisiana Cooperative Extension Service to evaluate accomplishment of selected educational objectives. The population included 247 county agents who had developed and executed an educational program during 1965 and 16 selected administrative and…

Substantial emphasis has been placed on Florida Extension faculty evaluating their educational programs for impact and the utilization of these data for program accountability, yet little is known of the extent to which the faculty have accepted this responsibility. In order to assess the stage of adoption of impact evaluation as a practice, and…

The recent conceptualization of organizations as "open" adaptive systems rather than "closed" systems has lead to increased interest in the relationship between the organization and its significant environmental influences. In order to study the perceived sources of internal (organizational) and external (environmental)…

Data were gathered from Community Resource Development (CRD) field staff and from knowledgeable citizens, to obtain multiple indicators of the impact of CRD projects on economic and noneconomic changes and to assess the degree to which special client/audiences had shared in positive and negative consequences resulting in part from the CRD program.…

TO EVALUATE THE GRADUATE PROFESSIONAL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM, JOINTLY SPONSORED BY THE GENERAL EXTENSION DIVISION AND THE INSTITUTE OF AGRICULTURE OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA, THE INVESTIGATORS ADMINISTERED A SURVEY QUESTIONNAIRE TO PARTICIPANTS, THEIR EMPLOYERS, AND THE FACULTY. PARTICIPANTS WERE SURVEYED BOTH BEFORE AND AFTER THEIR COURSES,…

Rural Economics: Farmers in Transition (RE:FIT), the Dislocated Farmer Assistance Program in Ohio, was designed to help farm families assess their skills and interests in nonfarm employment. The processes used by agents in counseling families were evaluated. The program was designed by personnel of the Ohio Cooperative Extension Service (OCES) to…

A STUDY WAS MADE TO DETERMINE COUNTY EXTENSION AGENTS' PERCEPTION OF THEIR ROLE AND THAT OF ADVISORY BOARDS IN PLANNING, EXECUTING, AND EVALUATING THE COUNTY EXTENSION PROGRAM. AGENTS' VIEWS ON WHO OUGHT TO HAVE RESPONSIBILITY FOR PERFORMING COUNTY PROGRAMING FUNCTIONS WERE ALSO EXAMINED. ALL 109 AGENTS IN THE NORTHWESTERN EXTENSION DISTRICT IN…

IN 1954 CONGRESS EARMARKED FUNDS FOR A FARM AND HOME MANAGEMENT PROGRAM TO OFFER INTENSIVE ON-THE FARM COUNSELING IN MANAGEMENT AND DECISION MAKING. THIS SIX-PART EVALUATION OF THE PROGRAM AS IT WAS CONDUCTED IN NEW YORK STATE, PRIMARILY WITH DAIRY OPERATORS, WAS DESIGNED TO DETERMINE THE PROGRAM'S EFFECTIVENESS RELATIVE TO LESS INTENSIVE…

THIS STUDY WAS PART OF A LARGER RESEARCH PROJECT CONCERNED WITH NORTH CAROLINA 4-H EXTENSION AGENTS' PERCEPTION OF THEIR ROLE IN THE 4-H PROGRAM. THIS PARTICULAR STUDY DEALT WITH (1) THE DEGREE OF DIFFICULTY AGENTS ENCOUNTERED IN PERFORMANCE OF 37 TASKS APPROPRIATE TO THE 4-H AGENTS' ROLE, AND (2) TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES WHICH WOULD HELP THEM IN…