title: Using theories of action to guide national program evaluation and local strategy in the community care network demonstration.
abstract: Evaluations of multisite community-based projects are notoriously difficult to conceptualize and conduct. Projects may share an overarching vision but operate in varying contexts and pursue different initiatives. One tool that can assist evaluators facing these challenges is to develop a "theory of action" (TOA) that identifies critical assumptions regarding how a program expects to achieve its goals. Community Care Network (CCN) evaluators used the TOA to refine research questions, define key variables, relate questions to each other, and identify when we might realistically expect to observe answers. In this article, the authors present their national-level CCN TOA. They also worked with sites to help them "surface" their local TOA; the article analyzes the results to determine the content, clarity, extent of evidence base, and strategic orientation of theories articulated by different sites.
authors.affiliation: Baruch College.
authors.forename: Shoshanna
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sofaer
authors.forename: Gloria J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Bazzoli
authors.forename: Jeffrey A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Alexander
authors.forename: Douglas A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Conrad
authors.forename: Romana
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hasnain-Wynia
authors.forename: Stephen M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Shortell
authors.forename: Frances
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Margolin
authors.forename: Mary
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pittman
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Casey
authors.forename: Kala
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ladenheim
authors.forename: D Richard
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Mauery
authors.forename: Ann P
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Zukoski
mesh_terms: D019058:Community Networks / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000592:standards*; D007373:Interinstitutional Relations; D009937:Organizational Objectives; D010934:Planning Techniques; D015397:Program Evaluation; D014481:United States