The Harvard Family Research Project separated from the Harvard Graduate School of Education to become the Global Family Research Project as of January 1, 2017. It is no longer affiliated with Harvard University.
Volume IV, Number 1, 1998
Issue Topic: Performance Measurement
New & Noteworthy
An annotated list of organizations and initiatives related to the evaluation themes in this issue.
Amherst H. Wilder Foundation. (1997). Measuring outcomes: Practical applications for human services. Findings, 1(3). Saint Paul, MN: Author. This edition of the quarterly newsletter from the Wilder Foundation focuses on the practical aspects of how human services and educational organizations use outcome evaluation information to improve the effectiveness of their services. Tel: 612-333-4220. Wilder Research Center, 1295 Bandana Boulevard North, Suite 210, St. Paul, MN 55108.
Ammons, D. N. (1996). Municipal benchmarks: Assessing local performance and establishing community standards. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. This book explores the design of practical performance measurement systems, the improvement of existing systems, and the establishment of local performance standards. Tel: 805-499-9774. www.sagepub.com
Brown, B., & Corbett, T. (1997). Social indicators and public policy in the age of devolution. Madison: Institute for Research on Poverty and School of Social Work, University of Wisconsin-Madison. This paper discusses how devolution and other changes in public administration have increased the importance of social indicators as public policy tools and how the new focus on results requires a sophisticated use of what are broadly thought of as social indicators. www.irp.wisc.edu/publications/sr/pdfs/sr71.pdf
Friedman, M. (1997). A guide to developing and using performance measures in results-based budgeting. Washington, DC: The Finance Project. This paper addresses the challenge of how to be accountable for the best possible performance, while ensuring that performance is aligned with overall efforts to improve results. www.financeproject.org/Publications/measures.html
Hauser, R. M., Brown, B. V., & Prosser, W. R. (Eds.). (1997). Indicators of children's well-being. New York: Russell Sage Foundation. Essays by experts in multiple disciplines assess how data on physical development, education, economic security, family and neighborhood conditions, and social behavior are collected and analyzed; what findings they reveal; and what improvements are needed to create a more comprehensive and policy-relevant system of measurement. Tel: 800-524-6401. RSF Publications Office, 112 East 64th Street, New York, NY 10021-7383.
Koshel, J. (1997). Indicators as tools for managing and evaluating programs at the national, state and local levels of government: Practical and theoretical issues. Washington, DC: Child Trends. This paper surveys the variety of ways indicators are used by public officials and program administrators to measure performance and discusses the characteristics that indicators should have in order to meet management and planning needs. Tel: 202-362-5580. Child Trends, Inc., 4301 Connecticut Ave. N.W., Washington, DC 20008.
McDaniel, N., & Alsop, R. (1997). Fifth national roundtable on outcomes measures in child welfare services: Summary of proceedings. Englewood, CO: American Humane Association. Looking at emerging trends in child welfare and the impact on outcomes measurement, this report on the recent roundtable discussion includes information on federal requirements influencing outcomes measurement, linking interventions through research, and assessing outcomes across service systems and the community; criteria for selecting outcome indicators; and characteristics of successful outcomes initiatives. Tel: 303-792-9900. American Humane Association, Children's Division, 63 Inverness Drive East, Englewood, CO 80112-5117.
Schachter, H. L. (1996). Reinventing government or reinventing ourselves: The role of citizen owners in making a better government. Albany: State University of New York Press. This book offers a new perspective on the movement to reinvent government, arguing that citizens should be viewed as owners of government rather than as customers, and demonstrating that a reinvigorated public is essential to increasing agency efficiency and responsiveness. Tel: 800-666-2211. Fax: 800-688-2877. State University of New York Press, c/o CUP Services, PO Box 6525, Ithaca, NY 14851.
United States General Accounting Office. (1996). Executive guide: Effectively implementing the Government Performance and Results Act (Document #GGD-96-118). Washington, DC: Author. This report studies several public sector organizations successfully pursuing management reform initiatives and becoming more results-oriented. It discusses three key steps and important practices to implementing reforms. www.gao.gov/special.pubs/gg96118.pdf
United Way. (1997). Measuring program outcomes: A practical approach. Alexandria, VA: Author. This handbook is a complete resource for health, human services, and youth and family serving agencies, offering guidance and step-by-step strategies for specifying program outcomes, developing measurable indicators, identifying data sources and data collection methods, analyzing and reporting findings, and using outcome information. Tel: 800-772-0008. national.unitedway.org/outcomes/resources/mpo
Wandersman, A., et al. (1998). Comprehensive quality programming: Eight essential strategies for implementing successful prevention programs. Journal of Primary Prevention, 19(1), 3–30. This article presents strategies that can be used to improve the practice of prevention programs, with a focus on the strategies of youth and family prevention programs. A series of eight specific strategies, referred to as Comprehensive Quality Programming, and an overview of an effective method for using such strategies to improve programs continuously are included.
Yates, J. (1997). Performance management in human services. Washington, DC: The Welfare Information Network. Performance measurement systems have grown increasingly relevant to both government and private organizations providing child, family, and human services. This paper examines the work of several states taking the lead in managing for performance and discusses the lessons learned. www.financeproject.org/Publications/perfman.htm
Jessica Chapel, Editorial Assistant, HFRP