A comparison between Success Case Method and Utilization-Focused Evaluation Writer: Erika Carlson

1. Success Case Method
Utilization-Focused Evaluation
A Comparison of Evaluation Methods

2. Success Case Method
• A quasi-evaluation study – small focus on one area, or one
method of study
• Compares what is working in a program with what is not
working
• Looks at how successes can be scaled
• Example: Coryn, Schroter, and Hanssen (2007) –What factors
influence academic achievement in minority students?

3. Utilization-Focused Evaluation
• Eclectic – taking from a variety of evaluation methods
• All about utility – ensuring the program users have the
information they need, and that results of the evaluation
will be used
• It focuses on the stakeholders and the specific situation.

4. The RUPAS CASE
Which method is preferred?
• The Success Case Method would be appropriate because
of the ways it accesses successes and nonsuccesses in
each rural area according to the health standards.
• The Utilization-Focused Evaluation might contextualize
the program evaluation too much by area, and according
to each mother’s opinion. It would be useful to use this
method for stakeholder buy-in.

5. References
Alkin, M. C. (2011). Evaluation Essentials: From A to Z. NewYork, NY:The Guilford Press.
Campbell, D.T., & Stanley, J.C. ( 1966). Experimental and quasi-experimental designs for
research . Chicago, IL: Rand McNally.
Coryn C. L. S., Schröter D. C., Miron G., Kana’iaupuni S. K.,Tibbetts K. A., Watkins-Victorino L.
M., Gustafson O. W. (2007b). School conditions and academic gains among Native Hawaiians:
Identifying successful school strategies—Executive summary and key themes. Kalamazoo:The
Evaluation Center, Western Michigan University.
Stufflebeam, D. L. and Coryn, C. L. S. (2014). EvaluationTheory, Models, and Applications, Second
Edition. San Francisco, CA: Jossey‐Bass.
Yarbrough, D. B., Shulha, L. M., Hopson, R. K., & Caruthers, F. A. (2011). The program evaluation
standards: A guide for evaluators and evaluation users (3rd ed.).Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.