Outcome-Based Evaluation: Robert L. Schalock, Plenum Press, 1995, 242 pp.

Abstract

The field of program evaluation has seen a number of new developments over the past several years. One of those developments has been a shift toward oufcomes evaluation, in an attempt to identify and measure program effects on client knowledge, skills, attitudes, behaviors, or conditions. This shift has impacted virtually all not-for-profit organizations, who now need to demonstrate to donors, decision-makers, taxpayers, clients, and other stakeholders that a given program is achieving its intended goals and objectives. This focus on client change has been advocated by a host of individuals and organizations (see, e.g., Drucker, 1990; Hatry, et al., 1992; United Way of America, 1996). Schalock’s Outcome-Based Evaluation continues this shift by providing a primer on outcome evaluation, intended for both consumers and producers of program evaluations. This focus on outcomes is a welcome addition to the program evaluation textbook market, because so many of the major texts have yet to dedicate any meaningful space to outcomes-for example, Rossi and Freeman’s (1993) highly regarded text, even in its fifth edition, spends little time on outcomes evaluation. This book would probably best serve as a text in a program evaluation course for graduate students. Its strengths are, first, in its coverage of an important new approach in evaluation (a “paradigm shift,” according to the author); and among others, a very fine chapter covering the specifics of data management, with details on collecting and organizing data. Most other evaluation texts tell the reader about the importance of data collection and management, but fail to provide adequate instruction on the techniques. Another plus for the reader of this book is the inclusion of “study questions” at the end of each chapter, which help to crystallize the major points contained in the chapter. While the book claims it also is written for a “consumer” of evaluations and evaluation reports, I would guess that the organization of the book is a bit too confusing for someone not already versed in some of the techniques and issues of program evaluation. Part of the confusing organization of the book, at least for me, is the placement of the topics-for example, the treatment of evaluation designs is left until chapter 8. Moreover, the “Benefit-Cost Analysis” chapter is mostly a rendering of a traditional “efficiency” model, rather than a cost-effectiveness (cost per positive outcome) approach. While the author briefly mentions and recognizes cost-effectiveness as an approach, he does not explore it further, and the discussion seems to