title: Evaluating theory-based evaluation: information, norms, and adherence.
abstract: Programmatic social interventions attempt to produce appropriate social-norm-guided behavior in an open environment. A marriage of applicable psychological theory, appropriate program evaluation theory, and outcome of evaluations of specific social interventions assures the acquisition of cumulative theory and the production of successful social interventions--the marriage permits us to advance knowledge by making use of both success and failures. We briefly review well-established principles within the field of program evaluation, well-established processes involved in changing social norms and social-norm adherence, the outcome of several program evaluations focusing on smoking prevention, pro-environmental behavior, and rape prevention and, using the principle of learning from our failures, examine why these programs often do not perform as expected. Finally, we discuss the promise of learning from our collective experiences to develop a cumulative science of program evaluation and to improve the performance of extant and future interventions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Arizona, USA. wjj@u.arizona.edu
authors.forename: W Jake
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Jacobs
authors.forename: Melissa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sisco
authors.forename: Dawn
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hill
authors.forename: Frederic
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Malter
authors.forename: Aurelio José
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Figueredo
mesh_terms: D015438:Health Behavior; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006293:Health Promotion; D006801:Humans; D011314:Preventive Health Services; D015397:Program Evaluation / Q000379:methods; D011902:Rape / Q000517:prevention & control; D016540:Smoking Cessation; D000074606:Smoking Prevention; D012919:Social Behavior