- ISBN13: 9781412958646
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
The Logic Model Guidebook offers a concise, practical overview of the logic modeling process as applied to numerous organizational contexts. Authors Lisa Wyatt Knowlton (Ed.D.) and Cynthia C. Phillips (Ph.D.) examine the structures, processes, and language of logic models as an emerging tool that improves the design, development, and implementation of change efforts within programs and greater organizational initiatives. Through concise, step-by-step process articulation, enhanced by numerous visual learning guides (sample models, checklists, exercises, worksheets) and case examples, the authors provide students, practitioners, and beginning researchers with invaluable tools to develop and improve these… More >>
The Logic Model Guidebook: Better Strategies for Great Results
I was really excited to hear of this book and delighted when it arrived from the US into my letterbox in Melbourne, Australia.
I have been working with program logic and program theory for several years and have applied mapping tools to organisational strategy, business planning, outcomes mapping and program evaluation. While there are a number of articles, manuals, handbooks and edited chapters in books on these topics, few books have comprehensively covered logic models.
For several years I have been searching for a resource that addressed the central elements of logic mapping with a thoughtful analysis of their strengths and limitations. The search is over! This book provides an excellent overview of logic models. It scopes the issues and processes informing their development and reinforces key points with case study examples illustrating the varieties of logic maps that can be developed for particular situations and contexts.
This book has made an important contribution to extending my thinking and practice. It will be a book I certainly will recommend to my colleagues.
The authors should be congratulated for producing such an extremely well presented, refreshing and useful book. I am confident it will make a real contribution to program planning and to program evaluation.
Rating: 5 / 5
As an employee and sometimes executive of nonprofit organizations for almost two decades, I found this book refreshingly original, practical and specific in improving my thinking about effective strategies. Anyone involved in nonprofit work can benefit substantially by reading the book and applying its wisdom.
Rating: 5 / 5
The Logic Model Guidebook uses a conversational style to walk through a practical, step-by-step process of developing and using logic models. The authors emphasize that the logic models should be an integral part of both planning and implementation of programs, and that they are also a valuable strategic planning tool at the project, organizational, and systems level. This is an important idea, since the process of logic modeling can be used to ensure that the various stakeholders hold a shared vision of the purpose of the effort being undertaken, which will lead to more effective implementation. The authors suggest that logic models are a useful tool for strategic planning, clarifying program goals and ensuring the “right” things are measured, and allow the program to connect to the system (such as health services for children) in which it operates.
The Guidebook is separated into two parts; Construction and Applications, and each chapter begins with learning objectives, works through the content and ends with discussion questions and realistic application examples. Illustrations and charts are provided for the visual learner, along with narrative to explain the concepts presented. Each chapter ends with reflection questions and an application exercise, making it suitable for use in a workshop or course. Supplemental readings related to the topics in each chapter (both print and internet based) are located at the end of each chapter so the reader can do further research to deepen their understanding of the concepts as they move through the book. This user-friendly format continues throughout the book as the chapters shift from teaching the basic underpinnings of the logic of and need for a theory of change to discussion of various considerations during the process of construction and modeling to the examples provided in Part II Applications. The authors’ foundational belief is that “the greatest value of logic models is their use in an iterative, intentional process aimed at improving the thinking they illustrate.” This belief is threaded throughout the text in a clear, succinct manner. When using theoretical or technical language, care is taken to provide definitions, which makes the text accessible to both program staff and seasoned evaluators working through logic modeling with clients.
The method for the development of logic models presented in the Guidebook is participatory and stakeholder driven. The authors stress that stakeholder created logic models are more likely to reflect the “true” workings of a program, and are more likely to be used in ongoing planning as a benchmark or reality check for program implementation and success. There are numerous models and real-world examples of `logic models in action’ for the reader to gain an understanding of practical applications. Unique to the Guidebook is the use of archetypes as recipes that can be used to move stakeholders beyond the paralysis that can occur when the words “logic model” are spoken. The authors note that the use of existing examples and the inclusion of the evaluation consumer in the process makes them usable as an ongoing tool for planning, rather than a burdensome task. The emphasis on utility rather than volume in selection of outcomes should put users at ease.
The Guidebook is a valuable tool for use by program staff, evaluators, and educators as a user-friendly introduction to logic modeling.
Rating: 5 / 5