Addressing program fidelity using onsite observations and program provider descriptions of program delivery

Area of Science:

• Program Evaluation
• Public Health
• Educational Psychology

Background:

• Documentation of program implementation is vital as interventions move from controlled to real-world settings.
• Practitioner adaptations to programs during dissemination can alter intended outcomes.
• School-based settings present unique challenges for maintaining program fidelity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To highlight challenges in maintaining high fidelity for a school-based victimization prevention program.
• To examine fidelity based on different data collection techniques.

Main Methods:

• Observations of program delivery in a school setting.
• Program provider descriptions of implementation practices.
• Analysis of fidelity using varied data collection methods.

Main Results:

• Maintaining high fidelity in school-based prevention programs is difficult.
• Different data collection techniques yield varied insights into implementation fidelity.
• Practitioner adaptations are common in real-world program delivery.

Conclusions:

• Careful documentation and evaluation are essential for school-based programs.
• Understanding implementation challenges is key to successful program dissemination.
• Further research is needed on effective fidelity monitoring in diverse settings.