Certified Prevention Specialist CPS Practice Exam

When is it appropriate to engage community members in the program evaluation process?

1. During the evaluation design portion, but not the data collection portion.

2. For data collection purposes only, because they can use their connections in the community.

3. All the way through.

4. Not at all, since their presence may bias evaluation results.

The correct answer is: All the way through.

Engaging community members in the program evaluation process is crucial for ensuring the evaluation is comprehensive, relevant, and inclusive. By involving community members from the evaluation design phase all the way through to the data collection and analysis stages, you are able to gather diverse perspectives, insights, and feedback that can enhance the validity and reliability of the evaluation. This participatory approach promotes community ownership, increases the likelihood of successful implementation of evaluation recommendations, and fosters trust and transparency between the program and the community it serves. Options A and B are not ideal because limiting community involvement to specific stages of the evaluation can result in overlooking valuable input and perspectives that community members could provide throughout the entire process. Option D is inaccurate as excluding community members from the evaluation process altogether would overlook their unique perspectives and insights, thereby undermining the evaluation's credibility and relevance to the community.