Evaluating family programs : current issues in theory and policy / Heather B. Weiss, Francine H. Jacobs, editors.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Weiss, Heather Bastow.

Jacobs, Francine Helene

Class of 1932 Fund.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Family social work--United States--Evaluation.

Family social work.

Child welfare--United States--Evaluation.

Child welfare.

Aid to families with dependent children programs--United States--Evaluation.

Aid to families with dependent children programs.

Evaluation research (Social action programs)--United States.

Evaluation research (Social action programs).

Evaluation.

United States.

Physical Description:

xxxii, 556 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Piscataway, N.J. : AldineTransaction, [2008]

Summary:

The diverse composition of American families and changing ways of raising our children have become subjects of intense scrutiny by researchers and policymakers in recent years. Shifting demographics and work patterns, growing numbers of women in the work force, teenage pregnancy, single-parent families, and the deinstitutionalization of the elderly, disabled, and mentally ill-all these trends have significantly affected family life. Evaluating Family Programs effectively bridges the gap between researchers and practitioners in order to bring practical, understandable advice to providers of family programs and to program funders and policymakers.

Heather B. Weiss and Francine H. Jacobs have collected in this volume works which move outside the traditional approaches of their disciplines to create new models for delivering and evaluating services. This sets a mood of genuine inquiry and excitement about successful aspects of programs while maintaining openness about the limitations of both research and practice. By expanding the research model, this work is an attempt to understand reciprocal influences of extended family, culture, community, and social institutions. It urges those who advocate program accountability to understand that not all types of evaluations are appropriate for all programs, and it notes that limitations in current evaluation technologies make it difficult to evaluate outcomes.

Evaluating Family Programs reminds the reader that in order to develop sound family policy we must look at children and families in context. Because policymakers, program administrators, and informed citizens have come to rely more upon the results of evaluation research, we must improve our methods while not losing sight of its limitations. It is a thought-provoking contribution to the efforts of those who seek to support the American family with compassion, understanding, and realism.

Contents:

Introduction: Family Support and Education Programs-Challenges and Opportunities / Heather B. Weiss, Francine H. Jacobs xix

Part I The State of Our Knowledge about Program Effectiveness

Chapter 1 Family Support and Education Programs: Working Through Ecological Theories of Human Development / Heather B. Weiss 3

Chapter 2 The Five-Tiered Approach to Evlauation: Context and Implementation / Francine H. Jacobs 37

Part II Measuring Child, Parent, and Family Outcomes

Chapter 3 Rethinking the Assessment of Child-Focused Outcomes / Penny Hauser-Cram, Jack P. Shonkoff 73

Chapter 4 Evaluating Parent-Child Interaction Outcomes of Family Support and Education Programs / Gail A. Howrigan 95

Chapter 5 Measuring Parent Outcomes in Family Program Evaluation / Carole C. Upshur 131

Chapter 6 Measuring Family Systems Outcomes / Deborah Klein Walker, Ruth W. Crocker 153

Chapter 7 Measures of Stress and Coping in Families / Marty Wyngaarden Krauss 177

Chapter 8 Social Support: Conceptualization and Measurement / Paul D. Cleary 195

Part III Evaluation Experiences: Case Studies from the Field

Chapter 9 Lessons from the Evaluation of the Brookline Early Education Project / Terrence Tivnan 221

Chapter 10 Common Design and Methodological Problems Encountered in Evaluating Family Support Services: Illustrations from the Prenatal/Early Infancy Project / David Olds 239

Chapter 11 Toward an Understanding of the Program Variable in Comprehensive Parent Support Programs / Douglas R. Powell 267

Chapter 12 The Evaluation Experience of the AVANCE Parent-Child Education Program / Gloria G. Rodriguez, Carmen P. Cortez 287

Chapter 13 Prove to Me that MELD Makes a Difference / Ann Ellwood 303

Chapter 14 Toward Experimental Evaluation of the Family, Infant and Preschool Program / Carl J. Dunst, Carol M. Trivette 315

Chapter 15 The Cross-Project Evaluation of the Child Survival/Fair Start Initiative: A Case Study of Action Research / James T. Bond, Robert Halpern 347

Chapter 16 The Child Welfare League of America's Adolescent Parents Projects / Shelby H. Miller 371

Chapter 17 Studying Complexity: The Case of the Child and Family Resource Program / Marrit J. Nauta, Kathryn Hewett 389

Chapter 18 Using an Impact Evaluation Model with Too-Early-Childbearing Programs / Deborah Klein Walker, Anita M. Mitchell 407

Part IV Current Issues in Theory and Policy

Chapter 19 Cost Analyses in Family Support Programs / Karl R. White 429

Chapter 20 The Possibilities and Limitations of Meta-Analysis in Understanding Family Program Impact / Penny Hauser-Cram 445

Chapter 21 Programs for Racially and Ethnically Diverse American Families: Some Critical Issues / Diana T. Slaughter 461

Chapter 22 Ecological Perspectives on Change in Families / Barry Dym 477

Lessons in Context / Francine H. Jacobs, Heather B. Weiss 497

Appendix A Research Instruments and Their Sources 507

Appendix B Glossary of Research and Program Evaluation Terms / Carole C. Upshur 521.

Notes:

Originally published: New York : A. de Gruyter, c1988.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 507-519) and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Class of 1932 Fund.

ISBN:

9780202362151

0202362159

OCLC:

192027164

Publisher Number:

99937240284