In social work practice and in program development, it is possible to make faulty assumptions about what clients need and what social work activities will lead to. Consider the following:

A team of social workers meets to discuss their services to low-income young mothers. One social worker states that what the young mothers need most is information about community resources. She proposes that the social workers’ activities consist of making referrals to programs for public assistance for income support, food stamps, medical insurance, employment agencies, and educational resources. However, another team member points out that most clients are referred to their program from the public welfare office and health care programs. This suggests that the clients tend to possess knowledge of these common resources and have been able to access them.

How might the team explore what problems bring the clients to their agency? What might the team learn from client assessments? How can the team verify the desired outcomes of their services? Developing a logic model will help the team see a logical connection between problems, needs, intervention activities, and corresponding outcomes. This series of logical connections leads to formulating a theory of change, that is, a theory about how our work leads to the outcomes for clients.

To prepare for this Discussion, imagine that you are part of a work group charged with creating a logic model and generating a theory of change. Select a practitioner-level intervention for which you are interested in analyzing connections. Consider how a logic model might be applied to that practice.

Post(2 to 3 pages) a logic model and theory of change for a practitioner-level intervention. Describe the types of problems, the client needs, and the underlying causes of problems and unmet needs. Identify the short- and long-term outcomes that you think would represent an improved condition. Then describe interventions that would lead to a change in the presenting conditions. Be sure to search for and cite resources that inform your views.

 

Required Readings

Dudley, J. R. (2014). Social work evaluation: Enhancing what we do. (2nd ed.) Chicago, IL: Lyceum Books.
Chapter 6, “Needs Assessments” (pp. 107–142)

Plummer, S.-B., Makris, S., & Brocksen S. (Eds.). (2014a). Sessions: Case histories. Baltimore, MD: Laureate International Universities Publishing. [Vital Source e-reader].
Read the following section:
“The Petrakis Family”

Document: Randolph, K. A. (2010). Logic models. In B. Thyer (Ed.), The handbook of social work research methods (2nd ed., pp. 547–562). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. (PDF)
Copyright 2010 by Sage Publications, Inc.
Reprinted by permission of Sage Publications, Inc. via the Copyright Clearance Center.

United Way of America. (1996). Excerpts from Measuring program outcomes: A practical approach. Retrieved from http://web.archive.org/web/20130514153340/http://www.unitedwayslo.org/ComImpacFund/10/Excerpts_Outcomes.pdf

Document: Week 7: Developing A Logic Model Outline Assignment Handout (Word document)

To-Do List
” Continue to obtain, read, summarize, and evaluate relevant sources.
” Review feedback on first draft.
” Write your second draft.
” By class time on March 8th:
” Submit your draft to Turnitin Draft 2 in order to fix any problems before uploading it to Canvas.
” Submit draft to the Second Draft assignment link in the Canvas.
” Upload all sources (the actual articles) used in the second draft in the Sources assignment link in the Research Paper section of Canvas. If you read a source but are not using it in the paper, you do not need to upload it. Save each source as a pdf and name each one according to the author last name(s) and year (e.g., Baxter_Bosson_2006). If you do not have an electronic copy of a source, then you must turn in a paper copy.
” Seek feedback on your draft from either BrainFuse or a writing tutor in the CTL.

Second Draft-General Information
” In the second draft, you will make any necessary revisions to your Introduction section and to add the literature review sections (of your relevant sub-disciplines) to your research paper.
” All content in your second draft should either be in your own words (preferred) or in quotation marks with page numbers provided. Keeping plagiarism out of your draft is an important step in keeping it out of your final paper.
” Remember that slow and steady wins the race. Be sure to schedule regular times to write and hold yourself to keeping this schedule.

Format of Second Draft (+ Tips)
” Include Title Page, Revised Introduction, Literature Review Section (of sub-discipline A, sub-discipline B, and the integration of A and B), and References. Note that if you have more than 2 sub-disciplines, then you should review the relevant literature for each sub-discipline in your Literature Review section.
” Write at least 10-12 pages (of text), which is about 3600 words, and include at least 10-12 sources.
” Follow APA Style and avoid ALL forms of Plagiarism.
” Follow these Second Draft Guidelines carefully.

Content of Second Draft – Literature Review Section

In the literature review section of your second draft, develop the following sections of your outline. Note that the following is a suggested structure for this section of your paper. You may find that a different structure works better for your material. Feel free to discuss this further with me in person.

II. Sub-Discipline A
A. Review relevant literature in sub-discipline A (use a thematic structure, rather than an article-by-article structure).
B. Define relevant terms (where appropriate).
C. Critique literature in this section (as you are discussing it).
D. Summarize main themes in this section.

III. Sub-Discipline B
A. Review relevant literature in sub-discipline B (use a thematic structure, rather than an article-by-article structure).
B. Define relevant terms (where appropriate).
C. Critique literature in this section (as you are discussing it).
D. Summarize main themes in this section.

<repeat as necessary for 3rd sub-discipline>

IV. Integration of Sub-Disciplines A and B (and C, if relevant)
A. Discuss the themes that have emerged (what you have learned) from integrating the material from A and B, focusing on what is relevant for the proposal section of your paper.
B. Describe any inconsistencies and gaps in the two literatures. Use this description to make a case for the uniqueness/necessity of your proposed social program or applied research project

the attachments needs to be revised, the part above need to be written.