Types of Evaluation

There are two main types of traditional evaluations to evaluate safer gambling initiatives. Each type includes sub-types that serve different purposes. The purpose and goals of an evaluation start to become apparent when considering which type of evaluation to use. This is an important step in designing a meaningful evaluation.

Formative evaluations

Formative evaluations are performed early in the life cycle of a programme, near the beginning of its implementation. These types of evaluations focus on what is working and what is not working with the programme (and for whom), and what can be learned from its delivery to drive improvement. Formative evaluations aim to:

• Improve the programme by examining its purpose and underlying programme theory.
• Identify and monitor possible risks for implementation failure (when a programme is not implemented well) or theory failure (when an intervention is implemented as intended, but fails to have the desired impact because its underlying theory is flawed).
• Understand the initiative and its implementation, considering contextual constraints.¹
  

There are three sub-types of formative evaluations:²

1. Needs assessments
2. Evaluability assessments
3. Process evaluations

Summative evaluations

Summative evaluations typically occur after a programme has been operating for some time to determine if it is achieving its intended outcomes/objectives.^2,3 Although the focus of each sub-type of summative evaluation is slightly different, they both seek to make a judgement/determination about the value and success of a programme.

There are two sub-types of summative evaluations:³

1. Economic evaluations
2. Outcome evaluations

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¹ Mbuya, M. N., Jones, A. D., Ntozini, R., Humphrey, J. H., Moulton, L. H., Stoltzfus, R. J., Maluccio, J. A., & Sanitation Hygiene Infant Nutrition Efficacy (SHINE) Trial Team (2015). Theory-driven process evaluation of the SHINE trial using a program impact pathway approach. Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, 61 Suppl 7(Suppl 7), S752–S758. https://doi.org/10.1093/cid/civ716

² MacEachen, E. (2020). Formative Evaluations [MOOC lecture]. In E.MacEachen, Foundations of Program Evaluation. University of Waterloo.

³ Public Health England (2018). Guidance: Outcome evalution. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/evaluation-in-health-and-well-being-overview/outcome-evaluation