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The Alternative Community Events (ACE) Framework is built upon two key theoretical constructs: Alternative Activities and the Social Development Strategy (SDS). Ensuring fidelity to these constructs is crucial for maintaining the framework’s construct validity and effectiveness.
Alternative Activities, as a core prevention strategy, form the foundation of ACEs. However, the integration of the Social Development Strategy (SDS), developed by Hawkins and Catalano (1992), significantly enhances the framework’s construct validity. The SDS provides a theoretically sound approach to increasing protective factors in a community, which aligns closely with the goals of ACEs.
The SDS posits that through consistent positive interactions within family, school, peer, and community contexts, individuals develop stronger protective factors. This is achieved by creating opportunities for meaningful involvement, developing skills, and reinforcing positive behaviors. These elements foster strong social bonds and a sense of belonging, which in turn reduce risk factors and promote healthy development.
To maintain construct validity, ACEs must be designed and implemented in a way that deliberately incorporates SDS principles. This includes:
- Creating opportunities for active participation and engagement
- Facilitating skill development relevant to participants’ lives
- Providing consistent recognition and reinforcement for positive behaviors
- Fostering strong social bonds and a sense of community belonging
By adhering to these construct fidelity requirements, ACEs can effectively operationalize both Alternative Activities and SDS principles. This approach ensures that events are not only enjoyable alternatives to risky behaviors but also practical means of enhancing protective factors and promoting positive development.
Maintaining fidelity in dose and duration is essential for the effective implementation of Substance-Free Alternative Events (ACE). The recommendations below are designed to align with the Social Development Strategy (SDS) outcomes proposed by Hawkins and Catalano, which emphasize the importance of healthy development and prevention of problem behaviors.
Construct Fidelity Requirements:
Fidelity Implementation Data Collection and Monitoring: There have been many references to having consistency throughout the ACE Framework. This comes in the form of branding, promotion, event distribution timeframes, and quality. Cross Checking this section with the evaluation components and prior manual sections ensures continuity!
Tracking Attendance and Participation:
- Registration and Check-In: Use a registration system to track attendance at each event and monitor participant engagement over time, supporting Opportunities and Involvement. Beyond being able to track participation rates, registration may be necessary to assure that photo releases and liability releases are signed.
- Sign-in sheets where attendees also provide email and contact information for follow-up surveys.
- Incentive distribution
Ensuring Consistency:
- Standardized Procedures: Develop and adhere to the standardized procedures, built within the ACE Framework, for planning and executing events as anticipated. This will ensure consistency across all parts of the ACE Framework. It will allow for process evaluation, fidelity adherence and midcourse adjustments, if needed.
- Training for Organizers: Provide comprehensive training for event organizers and volunteers on the principles of ACE and the importance of maintaining fidelity, enhancing Skills.
Quality Assurance:
- Observation and Monitoring Fidelity: Conduct regular observations and evaluations of events to ensure they meet the established standards for dose and duration, meet the established guidelines for event preparation and execution, supporting the priority population and build community outcomes.
- Continuous Improvement: Use evaluation data to make continuous improvements to the strategy. This includes addressing any issues that arise, considering midcourse adjustments and enhancing overall effectiveness.
Dose and Duration:
Accurate documentation is essential for evaluating the success of ACE and making data-driven decisions. Event organizers should maintain detailed records of planning processes, participant demographics, event logistics, and outcomes. By following the recommendations for dose and duration, described in planning, and aligning them with the Social Development Strategy, you can ensure that your ACE program maintains high fidelity and effectively engages participants, leading to sustainable positive outcomes in substance abuse prevention.
Documentation and Data Collection:
Implement standardized, systematic data collection methods to gather quantitative and qualitative data on event participation, engagement levels, and participant feedback. Use surveys, observation checklists, and attendance records to collect comprehensive data.
Evaluation:
The following ACE Framework evaluation overview describes tools and methods for assessing the impact of ACE on individuals and the community. Comprehensive evaluation helps identify strengths, areas for improvement, and overall effectiveness, both locally and for iterative strategy refinement as ACEs are implemented in a multitude of community contexts. The evaluation processes supported for ACE implementation, data collection, and determination of impact includes specific measures that can be found in the provided in Appendices A, B and C below.
Event evaluation is a multi-faceted process that includes post-event surveys on changes in substance use attitudes, tracking of pro-social activities initiated by participants, and measurement of community engagement levels after each event. Ongoing analysis examines the relationship between event attendance and behavior changes, while regular reports assess the impact of branding on participation. The evaluation process also incorporates pre-program assessments of community needs and preferences, as baseline data, and post-event data. Improvement recommendations and annual strategy refinement are then based on evaluation findings. Each event is evaluated using a best practices checklist, and participant feedback. which is compiled to inform future improvements.
Long-term follow-up begins with the establishment of an initial long-term participant cohort and pre-program community substance use data collection. Throughout the program, annual follow-up surveys with regular participants and ongoing analysis of community-level substance use trends are conducted to assess the lasting impact of the ACE Framework.
Pre-implementation and baseline measures:
- Quantitative methods include an initial substance use prevalence survey and pre-program pro-social involvement scale scores at baseline. Event evaluation incorporates event attendance and repeat participation rates, as well as post-event substance use attitude surveys.
- Qualitative methods begin with initial focus groups on perceptions of substance-free activities and pre-program interviews with community partners. Event evaluation includes post-event focus groups on participant experiences and ongoing observation reports on adherence to ACE best practices.
- Formative evaluation components start with an initial assessment of planning team effectiveness and a pre-program branding consistency check. Throughout the program, regular feedback session reports and ongoing branding consistency assessments are conducted.
- Summative evaluation components include initial community substance use rates and a pre-program pro-social behavior assessment at baseline. Event evaluation involves annual substance use rate comparisons and a year-end analysis of changes in pro-social behavior.
- Community impact is assessed through an initial survey on community perceptions of substance-free activities and a pre-program inventory of community partnerships. Event evaluation includes an annual community perception survey and tracking of new partnerships and sponsorships.
Surveys and Questionnaires:
- Pre- and Post-Event Surveys: Collect data on participants’ attitudes, behaviors, and perceptions before and after events to measure changes and impact.
- Feedback Surveys: Collect participant feedback after each event to assess engagement levels and identify areas for improvement, ensuring reinforcement. This is probably an evaluation tool or QA measure, although it is consistent with good design fidelity.
- Satisfaction Surveys: Gauge participant satisfaction with the events and gather suggestions for future improvements.
- Stakeholder Surveys: Stakeholder engagement is evaluated through initial stakeholder analysis and engagement levels, as well as a pre-program assessment of youth involvement in decision-making. During events, stakeholder participation rates in events and planning are tracked, and youth advisory board feedback is collected after each event.
Observational Assessments:
- Use standardized observation tools to assess participant engagement, interactions, and adherence to event activities.
- Additional evaluation tools are intended to allow for a comprehensive set of measures and methods to assess the program’s effectiveness and impact. Baseline measures include current substance use rates in the community, existing levels of pro-social behavior and community engagement, and a pre-program survey on attitudes towards substance-free activities. These initial assessments provide a foundation for comparing future outcomes.
- Branding effectiveness is measured through an initial brand recognition survey and pre-program social media engagement metrics. During the program, regular brand recognition tests and ongoing social media engagement analysis are conducted.
Wrap up your Action Plan by completing the final worksheet: Ensuring community feedback
