Step 2 – Describe the Program

Overview and Importance

In Step 2, describe the program to be evaluated by identifying the intended outcomes and the key activities expected to lead to those outcomes. The program description should be clear and concise with enough detail to facilitate an understanding of the program roadmap. This step is vital because it lays the foundation for the rest of your evaluation. Investing time and effort to accurately describe the program will help ensure success as you further plan and implement the evaluation.

There are two key parts to describing the program:

1. A logic model or program roadmap, which is a 1-page graphic depiction of the relationship between a program's activities and its intended outcomes, typically with arrows showing the connections between/among each of these. The most common elements are:
   1. activities
   2. short-term, intermediate, and long-term outcomes
2. A narrative description providing more detail on the program, which typically includes:
   1. need
   2. inputs
   3. activities
   4. outcomes
   5. contextual factors
   6. stage of development

Refer to the full-length CDC Program Evaluation Framework Action Guide for additional information, examples and worksheets to apply the concepts discussed in this step.

Developing a Logic Model

A logic model helps visualize the connection between the program activities and the changes that are intended to result from them. Your program's logic model can be useful for your interest holders and your broader program. Engage your interest holders in developing your logic model and program description from the start.

Logic models differ widely in format and level of detail; however, the core elements in all logic models include:

• Activities: strategies the program implements to effect change and achieve intended outcomes.
• Outcomes: who or what will change due to the program's efforts (program effects). Outcomes are logically sequenced to show the temporal sequence, starting with shorter-term (often more specific) outcomes leading to intermediate then longer-term outcomes (broader).

Additional terms you may see in logic models are

• Inputs: resources needed for program activities such as personnel, partners, materials, funding, equipment, data/surveillance, and the existing evidence base.
• Contextual factors: factors outside the program which may affect the ability to achieve the desired outcomes.

Outputs are the products of program activities. As an indicator of the activities, outputs fit best in the narrative section that describes the evaluation measures.

There are several possible approaches to developing a logic model. A good place to start is by identifying activities and outcomes that may be contained in the program descriptions, mission/vision statements, or program planning documents. You can then either start with the activities and ask "so what" to generate the outcomes or start with the desired outcomes and ask "how to" achieve them through program activities.

Similar Terms for a Logic Model

The logic model term is commonly used in evaluation, though there are other related terms you may see:

• Program Roadmap
• Theory of Change123
• Theory of Cause
• Theory of Action
• Concept(ual) Maps
• Outcome Maps
• Logical Frameworks4

Logic Model Visualization Techniques

Apply communications best practices when developing your logic model:

• Visualize relationships between and among groups using arrows
• Use space and color to signal clear groupings of logic model components
• Be careful when putting text on colored spaces
• Fit the logic model on a single page (not including the narrative)

Developing the Narrative

The program narrative explains the components of the logic model in more detail and includes:

1. Need: The issue, challenge or opportunity the program is intending to solve or is contributing to solving.
2. Input: Resources needed for conducting program activities such as personnel, partners, materials, funding, equipment, data and the existing evidence base.
3. Activities: Identifies what the program is implementing to effect change and achieve intended outcomes.
4. Outcomes: Identifies who or what is expected to change due to the program's efforts.
5. Contextual factors: Factors outside of the program that might affect achieving the desired outcomes.
6. Stage of development: The evolution of the program.

Understanding contextual factors and stage of development are essential when conducting an evaluation. The sections below provide more detail on these important components.

Identifying and Describing Contextual Factors

Programs operate in the real world, which are complex environments. As such, incorporating how external elements may facilitate or hinder your program's ability to achieve its goals into your program description or logic model, helps account for and interpret findings accurately. Identifying and describing contextual factors that will influence whether your program is able to implement the activity and achieve the outcomes is helpful for transferring learnings from the evaluation to another context. During this process, draw on insights from your efforts assessing context in Step 1. Understanding the relationship of the context to the program functions and products allows you to understand potential impacts on the program's success.

Identifying and Describing the Stage of Development

A program's stage of development is a factor in determining the type of evaluation to be conducted (process, outcome). Align your evaluation purpose and questions with the program's stage of development (see Step 3 - Focus the evaluation question and design). The three stages of program development include:

Planning: The program being evaluated is early in its development, and its activities have likely not been implemented or tested yet. Some piloting in the field may be or have been occurring.

Implementation: The program and its activities are already being implemented at the time of evaluation.

Maintenance: The program is more mature, having been implemented for an extended period of time. The program or the component being evaluated should have produced some if not most of the intended likely outcomes.

Applying the Cross-Cutting Actions and Evaluation Standards

As with the other evaluation framework steps, consider how to apply the cross-cutting actions and evaluation standards when developing your logic model and evaluation to Step 2. Refer to Table 3 in the CDC Program Evaluation Framework, 2024 to assess how these standards and cross-cutting actions are applied to the program description.