The Use of Contribution Analysis in Evaluating Health Interventions: A Scoping Review

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Program Evaluation
• Public Health

Background:

• Contribution Analysis (CA) is a theory-based evaluation approach for complex interventions.
• Its application in health interventions is not well-explored.

Purpose of the Study:

• To conduct a scoping review on the application of CA in health interventions.
• To examine methodologies, strengths, and limitations of CA in health programming.

Main Methods:

• Comprehensive search of 15 databases (1999-2023) for CA in health interventions.
• Rigorous double- and triple-screening of identified articles.
• Narrative summarization of extracted data.

Main Results:

• Seven relevant studies were identified, applying CA to health promotion, policies, nutrition, cardiovascular disease, substance misuse, and suicide prevention.
• Strengths include flexible impact evaluation, informing decision-making, and enhancing program understanding.
• Challenges involve determining evidence levels and managing resource intensity.

Conclusions:

• CA is a novel approach in health intervention evaluation, with growing but limited application.
• Standardized methods and detailed stakeholder engagement strategies are needed for its effective implementation.