Prevention Science and Child/Youth Development: Randomized Explanatory Trials for Integrating Theory, Method, and Analysis in Program Evaluation

Understanding the impact of youth development programs has been an important topic since the programs first began, and the past 25 years in particular have witnessed considerable advances in the evaluation of youth development programs. This article presents a brief history of youth development program evaluation, considering how it has changed over the years. From there, three contemporary trends related to youth program evaluation are examined: 1) a new evaluation focus, which is the emphasis on evaluating program quality; 2) organizational structures related to effective program evaluation, primarily in the area of program evaluability and evaluation capacity building; and 3) an emerging evaluation approach, involving youth in evaluating the programs that affect them. The article concludes with a call for programs to attend carefully to program implementation quality.

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The 4-H Health Rocks! Program in Florida: Outcomes on Youth Tobacco, Alcohol, and Other Substance Abuse Prevention

Journal of Youth Development ◽

10.5195/jyd.2014.60 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 9 (2) ◽

pp. 65-76

Author(s):

Muthusami Kumaran ◽

Kate Fogarty ◽

Amanda Terminello ◽

Whitney M. Fung

Keyword(s):

Substance Abuse ◽

Program Evaluation ◽

Experiential Learning ◽

Youth Development ◽

Positive Youth Development ◽

Adolescent Substance Abuse ◽

Adolescent Substance ◽

Drug Knowledge ◽

Program Components ◽

Beliefs And Attitudes

Youth tobacco, alcohol, and other substance abuse is a serious concern in the State of Florida, as well as across the nation. 4-H Health Rocks! is a positive youth development prevention program that utilizes experiential learning methods and youth-adult partnerships. The program and supporting curriculum were designed to foster personal and social skills to better equip adolescents to overcome pressures to participate in substance use. The purpose of this article is to describe the implementation of Health Rocks! in Florida and program evaluation including its impact on participants’ drug knowledge, drug beliefs and attitudes, and drug resistance skills. Program evaluation indicates that 4-H Health Rocks! resulted in statistically significant improvement in each of these categories for hundreds of youth reached in 2009-2012. The importance of program components in preventing and influencing adolescent substance abuse are discussed.

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An Intentional Approach to Achieving Learning Outcomes during a Youth Leadership Residential Program

Journal of Youth Development ◽

10.5195/jyd.2012.129 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 7 (3) ◽

pp. 59-64

Author(s):

Jeremy Green ◽

Jamie Davis

Keyword(s):

Program Evaluation ◽

Learning Outcomes ◽

Youth Development ◽

Positive Youth Development ◽

Life Skills ◽

Leadership Capacity ◽

Residential Program ◽

Youth Leadership ◽

Development Literature ◽

High Desert

The High Desert Leadership Retreat (HDLR) is an annual four-day youth conference which incorporates positive youth development practices to build life skills and increase youth leadership capacity. There are numerous examples in youth development literature of program models and associated outcomes. However, few studies have articulated which aspects of a conference contribute to the achievement of learning outcomes. By utilizing proven program evaluation methods, the achievement of learning outcomes was measured during both formal and informal conference sessions.

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The Choices Program: Multisystemic Interventions for Enhancing the Personal and Academic Effectiveness of Urban Adolescents of Color

The Counseling Psychologist ◽

10.1177/0011000007304590 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 35 (6) ◽

pp. 779-796 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Elizabeth M. Vera ◽

Jennifer Caldwell ◽

Mary Clarke ◽

Rufus Gonzales ◽

Melissa Morgan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Program Evaluation ◽

Youth Development ◽

Positive Youth Development ◽

Program Development ◽

Urban Adolescents ◽

School Success ◽

Cultural Issues ◽

Adolescents Of Color ◽

Evaluation Strategies ◽

Future Program

Through a collaboration with a public school in a poor, urban, largely Latino neighborhood, a multisystemic program was designed to foster positive youth development and promote school success. Aspects of the program highlighted include (a) the rationale; (b) interventions developed with and for youth, their parents, and their teachers; (c) the process of incorporating cultural issues into the program; and (d) evaluation strategies. Recommendations for future program development are provided along with general ideas for program evaluation.

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Resource Review—Using Qualtrics Core XM for Surveying Youth

Journal of Youth Development ◽

10.5195/jyd.2021.886 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 16 (1) ◽

pp. 161-167

Author(s):

Jennifer E. Cushman ◽

Miriah Russo Kelly ◽

Maryann Fusco-Rollins ◽

Ryan Faulkner

Keyword(s):

Program Evaluation ◽

Data Collection ◽

Survey Data ◽

Youth Development ◽

Development Program ◽

Digital Tool ◽

Youth Development Program ◽

Data Collection And Analysis ◽

Development Context ◽

Education Outreach

Qualtrics software, a digital tool used for survey data collection and analysis, has become a commonly used technology in organizations around the country. Many educators are using this tool to collect, analyze, and communicate education, outreach, and engagement evaluation data in an efficient and effective way. In a youth development context, Qualtrics Core XM software can be used to design youth-focused digital surveys that are engaging and efficient, and it can help build program evaluation capacity. An assessment of some key functions of this tool and their applications to youth development program contexts is presented here.

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