Formative Evaluation

Our experts are dedicated to collecting and sharing with program managers, planners, and staff information that will lead to the modification or improvement of a program. 

We are happy to provide the help you need at any or all of the following steps in earning the answers you request:

                        -setting the boundaries of the evaluation

                                                           • determining the purposes of the evaluation

                                                           • finding out as much as we can about the program

                                                           • describing the program

                                                           • focusing the evaluation

                                                           • negotiating our role

                                                           • coming to preliminary agreement about services and responsibilities

                        -selecting appropriate evaluation methods

                                                          • refining the program description

                                                          • making sure we are asking the right questions

                                                          • finding out what courses of action will result from the data we supply

                                                          • designing a plan for examining program implementation

                                                          • designing a progress monitoring system

                                                          • estimating how much the evaluation will cost

                                                          • coming to final agreement about services and responsibilities

                        -collecting and analyzing information

                                                         • constructing or purchasing instruments

                                                         • setting deadlines for data collection

                                                         • determining expectations for interpreting data

                                                         • making sure that our data collection plan is implemented properly

                                                         • analyzing data with an eye toward program improvement

                        -reporting findings about changes to be made in the program and about additional formative activities.

                                                        • deciding on communication strategies

                                                       • meeting with program managers and/or staff to discuss and follow up on our findings

                                                       • leaving a record of the evaluation

Data Management

We are dedicated to detecting and correcting corrupt or inaccurate records from a record set, table, or database. The process of data cleaning includes data auditing, workflow specification, workflow execution, post-processing, and controlling. We can use popular methods. Those include parsing, data transformation, duplicate elimination, and statistical methods. By analyzing the data using the values of mean, standard deviation, range, and clustering algorithms, we can find values that are unexpected and thus erroneous.

We can examine any standardized residual greater than about 3 in absolute value, Hat element greater than 3p/n (p=k+1, k degrees of freedom), a Cook’s distance > 1, and Mahalanobis’s distance for case. We run Outlier Analysis such as a run-sequence plot,  a scatter plot, a histogram, and a box plot.

Tests for Reliability, Validity, and Power

We can test reliability (such as Cronbach’s alpha, test-retest reliability, split-half reliability, and inter-rater reliability) and validity (such as content validity, construct validity, criterion validity, internal validity, and external validity).

Data Analysis

We can design and perform the required statistical analyses. We are experts in statistical analysis such as t-test, ANOVA, traditional regression, logistic regression, MANCOVA, factor analysis, cluster analysis, survival analysis, time series analysis, canonical correlations, discriminant analysis, and more advanced statistical techniques such as structural equation modeling (SEM), hierarchical linear modeling (HLM), and path analysis. We are experts in statistical programming languages such as SAS, SPSS, HLM, Mplus, and Access.

Confidentiality

We provide all of our prospective clients with a Non-Disclosure Agreement immediately upon contact. Statistical Consulting Group shall maintain in strict confidence, and not use or disclose except pursuant to written instructions from prospective clients, provided that the obligation to protect the confidentiality of any such information or data shall not be excused if such information or data ceases to qualify as a Trade Secret as a result of the acts or omissions of Statistical Consulting Group.

Let's make it happen! Contact us today for a FREE consultation.

Email: info@statisticalconsultinggroup.com Call: 781-205-4719