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So what exactly (or inexactly) is the Theory of Change Approach?
*It depends a little on who you ask.
A Theory of Change explains how a group of early and intermediate accomplishments sets the stage for producing long-range results.
* The Community Builder’s Approach to Theory of Change.
A Theory of Change is about the central processes or drivers through which change comes about for individuals, groups or communities. It can derive from a formal research-based theory or from an untested, tacit understanding about how things work.
* Funnell and Rogers. “Purposeful Program Theory”.
A Theory of Change has basic components: 3
ImpactsStrategiesConnections
are (obviously) what the program or initiative hopes to accomplish.
Improved healthLower rates of re-arrestIncreased school attendanceLong-term employmentLess bullying
Impacts
are what the program does to bring about the desired impacts.
Strategies
Most programs deploy multiple which can be grouped together.
strategies
For example, a program to the reduce incidence and lessen the impacts of school bullying might
include strategies to:
Educate Students
Train Teachers
New School Policies
Provide Counseling
There may be several interventions for each of these strategies.
For example
Educate Students Train Teachers Provide Counseling New School Policies
In-class curriculum
Assembly programs
Publicity
In-service training
Coaching
For victims For bullies
Rules and sanctions Better monitoring of
incidents Improved
responsiveness
Interventions
In-class curriculum
In-service training
Counseling for bullies
Rules and sanctions
Assembly programs
Publicity
Coaching teachers
Counseling for victims
Better monitoring of incidents
Improved responsiveness Reduce incidents and
lessen the impacts of school bullying
But how do we relate this to this
?
By mapping logical pathways: between activities and outcomes. For example
In-class curriculum
Teacher training
Counseling for bullies
Rules and sanctions
Assembly programs
Publicity
Teacher coaching
Counseling for victims
Better monitoring of incidents
Improved responsiveness
Fewer incidents of bullying
Lessened impacts on victims
Improved school climate
Students develop new attitudes
Students feel empowered
That was a fairly simple model. It only had two main outcomes and it included only a few antecedent steps.
But it was a bit of a mess, wasn’t it?
And there may be more than one way of mapping out the paths.
And it’s easy to get lost.
So remind me again. Why are we doing this?
Let’s review one of our definitions of “Theory of
Change”.
A Theory of Change is about the central processes or drivers through which change comes about for individuals, groups or communities. It can be derived from a formal research-based theory or from an untested, tacit understanding about how things work.
* Funnell and Rogers. “Purposeful Program Theory”.
A Theory of Change is about the central processes or drivers through which change comes about for individuals, groups or communities. It can be derived from a formal research-based theory or from an untested, tacit understanding about how things work.
This idea is absolutely critical.
Like really.
Yet many Theories of Change neglect it.
Without a theory, there is no Theory of Change
What do you think drives
change?
Individual behavior change for
example?
* A common goal of many social programs.
How many theories can you list for individual
behavior change?
Incentives (carrots and sticks)Knowledge about the costs of old behaviors
Knowledge about the benefits of new behaviorsCoaching, modeling and/or mentoring
Case managementPsychotherapy
Here’s a partial list:
Person Focused
Economic conditionsInstitutional changes
Community changeNew rules or regulations
New norms of social behaviorImproved access to resources
Here’s what many people forget:
Social Focused
(In in
divid
ualistic
soci
eties)
Theories of change can be based on professional experience, academicresearch, sound hypotheses based on prior research or even common sense.
Caution!
Creating a TOC model makes it possible to articulate and therefore scrutinize the theories that underlie claims about how and why a set of interventions leads to a set of outcomes.
*
Unfortunately, many programs are based on
Access to a resource Use of that resourceKnowledge Behavior
changeSending a message Communication Ownership Responsibility
Faulty theories:
Or they fail to acknowledge alternate theories.
Let’s examine the theories behind one element of our bullying program.
* This line indicates an assumed theoretical link between counseling for bullies and less bullying behavior. BUT does this connection make sense?
In-class curriculum
Teacher training
Counseling for bullies
Rules and sanctions
Assembly programs
Publicity
Teacher coaching
Counseling for victims
Better monitoring of incidents
Improved responsiveness
Fewer incidents of bullying
Lessened impacts on victims
Improved school climate
Students develop new attitudes
Students feel empowered
What:Evidence is there that bullies have psychological problems?Evidence is there that those problems can be reduced with counseling?Type of counseling is warranted?Are the possible risks of a counseling approach?
And what about dosage ? How much counseling does
theory suggest?
Answers to these questions need to be articulated.
That’s the whole idea behind Theory of Change
If the theory upon which your program is based makes sense, then you know you’re
doing the right things.
Knowlton and Phillips, The Logic Model Guidebook
Of course in order to be successful, you also have to do the things right.
Knowlton and Phillips, The Logic Model Guidebook
Program evaluation can inform
both of these.
But that’s another story.
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