QUERI Implementation Guide
Section I Part 4: Formative Evaluation
Purposes
Whereas the general purpose of formative evaluation is to assess the process of implementation, specific purposes are numerous. Examples gleaned from the literature include the following goals:
- Assess whether a program or intervention addresses a significant need;
- Modify a proposed program or intervention, as needed;
- Detect unanticipated events systematically;
- Optimize/control implementation to improve potential for success;
- Obtain ongoing input for short-term adjustments;
- Document continual progress;
- Inform future similar implementation efforts, e.g., to other health care sites or to a larger system;
- Avoid "Type III" errors: "Failing to detect differences between the original intervention plan and the ultimate manner of implementation;"2
- Understand the extent/dose, consistency, usefulness, context, and quality of an intervention;
- Assist interpretation of program outcomes or worth; and
- Foster an understanding of the causal events leading to change and the specific components of the intervention that most influenced it.