What are outcomes models?
Outcomes models are visual models of all of the steps which need to be undertaken in order to achieve higher-level outcomes in a program or intervention. They are used in various format in various disciplines and known by a wide variety of names, including - logic models, program logics, intervention logics, strategy maps, ends-means diagrams, causal maps, theories of change, program theories etc.) All of these types of models have the common purpose of setting out in a clear format (often visual) what needs to be done in order to get to a particular outcome or set of outcomes.
For instance, say that you are wanting to run a program for helping school students who have learning difficulties. You could spend a lot of time spelling out the way in which you think the program should run in long narrative text document and you could give verbal presentations with lots of slides with bullet points regarding what you are planning to do.
In contrast, if you use an outcomes modeling approach, particularly a visual one, you will simply draw a diagram of all of the steps which you think are needed in order to achieve higher level outcomes. A set of tips for drawing such outcomes models is available on this site and more detailed guidelines are set out here.
What is an example of an outcomes model?
An example of an outcomes model of a program for helping school students with learning difficulties is available on this site in the list of outcomes models.
Have a look at this model and see how it lets you quickly work out what the program planners believe is happening in the program. This sort of approach lets project staff, stakeholders, evaluators and other very rapidly come to understand the mechanisms which are believed to lie behind a program getting to its outcomes.
Such models can be drawn about a wide range of different processes. For instance, high level outcomes for a country as a whole, organizational outcomes, project outcomes, steps related to more specific processes such as quality control, risk management etc.
What can outcomes models be used for?
Once outcomes models have been drawn they can then be used for a variety of different purposes - if they have been drawn in accordance with the tips and guidelines mentioned above. Possible uses for such models are:
- Project planning
- Discussions with stakeholders about what the program or intervention will consist of
- Setting priorities for the steps which need to be implemented first (Example)
- Identifying the evidence which lies beneath the links between steps and outcomes in the model when doing evidence-based practice
- Mapping different projects or interventions onto a common set of outcomes (Example)
- Putting measurements (indicators) onto an outcomes model so you can see what is, and what is not, currently being measured (Example)
- Putting evaluation questions (or research or other types of questions) onto an outcomes model so you can be clear about the specific questions you are, and are not going to answer (Example).
- Identifying evaluation (or other information collecting projects) you are going to run in order to find out information about what is happening in regard to your program or intervention (Example).
- Reporting back results of your monitoring or evaluation work directly onto the visual outcomes model.
All of these possibilities are set out in detail in the Easy Outcomes system and how to do them is described in the Easy Outcomes Workbook.
