Assessing the subsequent effect of a formative evaluation on a program

The literature on formative evaluation focuses on its conceptual framework. methodology and use. permeating this work is a consensus that a program will be strengthened as a result of a formative evaluation although little empirical evidence exists in the literature to demonstrate the subsequent effects of a formative evaluation on a program. This study begins to till that gap. To do this, we outline the initial program and formative evaluation, present key findings of the formative evaluation, describe how these findings influenced the final program and summative evaluation, and then compare the findings to those of the formative. The study demonstrates that formative evaluation can strengthen the implementation acid some impacts of a program, i.e, knowledge and some behaviors. The findings also suggest that when researchers are faced with negative feedback about program components in a formative evaluation, they need to exercise care in interpreting and using this feedback. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. AH rights reserved.