SOWO 510 – Spring 2014 – Lippold
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
School of Social Work
Course:
SOWO 510, Foundations for Evidence-Based Practice and Program Evaluation
Spring 2014, Friday 9:00 – 11:50 A.M., Room 114
Professor:
Melissa A. Lippold, Ph.D., A.M. Social Work, M.P.P.
Assistant Professor, School of Social Work
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
CB#3550, 325 Pittsboro St., Office #417
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7590
Phone: (919) 962-6405
mlippold@unc.edu
Office Hours: Before and after class and by appointment
**Dr. Lippold reserves the right to alter this syllabus during the course
COURSE DESCRIPTION AND OBJECTIVES: Social workers, whether they are front-line
practitioners, program managers, administrators, or policy makers, routinely face complex
human situations involving individuals who come from diverse backgrounds. The social
interventions social workers have at their disposal vary in their degree of effectiveness with any
given individual, family, group, organization or community. In order to provide the most effective
social work programs, policies and interventions, social workers must be able to determine if
what they are doing is beneficial to the individuals, families, groups, organizations, or
communities they serve. To this end, students will develop knowledge of the purposes of
research and evaluation and the approaches and methodologies necessary to evaluate social
work interventions. Upon completion of this course students will be able to demonstrate:
1. Skill in developing and implementing social intervention evaluations that promote
evidence-based social work practice and policy;
2. Skill in evaluating social intervention research and applying findings to social work
practice and policy;
3. Skill in qualitative and quantitative evaluation design, measurement, data analysis, and
knowledge dissemination;
4. Knowledge of the practical, political, and economic issues related to the evaluation of
social interventions;
5. Skill in accessing and assessing public databases and research literature as a
foundation for evidence-based practice;
6. Skill in designing social intervention research that is sensitive to racial, religious, gender,
sexual orientation, social, economic, and other issues of difference; and
7. Ability to apply social work ethics and values to the evaluation of social interventions.
REQUIRED TEXTS:
Rubin, R. & Babbie, E. R. (2011). Essential research methods for social work. (3rd ed.) Belmont,
CA: Brooks-Cole.
The required text is available in the UNC Student Stores. Additional readings will be posted on
SAKAI or will be available through the UNC-CH Library electronic databases.
SOWO 510 – Spring 2014- Lippold
POLICY ON INCOMPLETE OR LATE ASSIGNMENTS:
Late assignments are strongly discouraged. In case of an emergency, a late assignment may be
accepted at the discretion of the instructor. To obtain permission to submit an assignment after
the deadline, the student must seek approval from the instructor at least 24 hours before an
assignment is due. If permission for late submission is not granted before breaking a
deadline, the grade will automatically be reduced 10%, and another 10% reduction will
occur each day, including weekends. Avoid having last-minute computer or printing failures
prevent you from turning papers in on time. Assignments that are more than 5 days late will not
be accepted. A grade of “Incomplete” will be given only in extenuating circumstances and in
accordance with School of Social Work and University policy.
POLICY ON ACADEMIC DISHONESTY: Academic dishonesty is contrary to the ethics of the
social work profession, is unfair to other students and will not be tolerated in any form. Please
refer to the APA Style Guide, The SSW Manual, and the SSW Writing Guide for information on
attribution of quotes, plagiarism and appropriate use of assistance in preparing assignments. All
written assignments should contain a signed pledge from you stating that, "I have not given or
received unauthorized aid in preparing this written work.” In keeping with the UNC Honor Code,
if reason exists to believe that academic dishonesty has occurred, a referral will be made to the
Office of the Student Attorney General for investigation and further action as required.
FORMAT FOR WRITTEN WORK: APA format should be used for all written assignments.
Students should refer to the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6th
ed.) for information on APA format. Information on APA can be found at
http://www2.lib.unc.edu/instruct/citations/?page=apa_sample and
http://www.lib.unc.edu/instruct/citations/apa/index.html.
POLICY ON ACCOMMODATIONS FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES: Students with
disabilities that affect their participation in the course and who wish to have special
accommodations should contact the University’s Disabilities Services (Voice/TDD 962-8300,
966-4041). Students must have a formal letter from the University’s Department of Disabilities
Services to receive disability-based accommodations. Students should discuss the need for
specific accommodations with their instructor at the beginning of the semester.
USE OF ELECTRONIC DEVICES IN THE CLASSROOM. We are all invested in creating a
learning environment of respect and engagement. Students may use laptops in class for taking
notes or completing small group tasks. However, use them only for relevant activities – not for
checking email or surfing the Web. During class, cell phones and other devices should be
silenced.
ATTENDANCE AND PARTICIPATION: Attendance at all class sessions is expected; it is
important to be on time so as not to disrupt class. If you will not be able to attend a class, let the
instructor know as soon as possible. It is your responsibility to obtain handouts, information
about class content, and information about announcements, etc., from your classmates if you
are unable to attend a class. Students who miss two or more classes may receive an “L”
for the course because it is not possible to meet course requirements for learning objectives
with that level of absenteeism. In order to fully participate in and benefit from each class
session, students should complete required readings before class and come to class prepared
to discuss them.
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SOWO 510 – Spring 2014- Lippold
COURSE REQUIREMENTS
Citi Training: Students are required to complete citi training online. Students will print out the
certificate of completion of this course to receive credit.
Quizzes: Each week at the beginning of class, a short quiz covering material from the previous
week will be given. Each quiz will be discussed after its completion and returned after grades
are recorded. Quiz grades will be averaged and this final quiz grade will count for 20% of the
total grade. The lowest quiz grade will be dropped. These quizzes will provide ongoing feedback
concerning knowledge acquisition and will provide the information necessary to take corrective
measures, by both the professor and students, to ensure that adequate learning has occurred.
Midterm and Final Exams: The midterm and final exams will be worth 20% each. The final exam
will not be cumulative. Exams will consist of true/false, multiple choice, short answer, and essay
questions.
Evaluation Project: An evaluation project related to each student’s field placement or specific
interests will be the primary written assignment for this course. The final evaluation project will
be a paper which contains the following: (1) Abstract, (2) Introduction and Literature Review; (3)
Methods and Results; and (4) Discussion and Conclusion. More specific information on the final
paper will be distributed during class. The project will make up 20% of the total grade.
Course Participation: Five percent of the course grade will reflect student participation. Grades
will be based on attendance, participation in class activities and discussions, and tardiness.
Students who are late to class more than 3 times without adequate explanation will receive a
zero for participation points.
GRADING
Citi Training
Quizzes
Midterm Exam
Final Exam
Evaluation Project
Participation
5%
20%
20%
20%
20%
5%
100%
Points
94 – 100
80 – 93
70 – 79
< 69
Grade
H
P
L
F
COURSE OUTLINES AND READINGS
Date
Topic and Assignments
Readings
January 10
Course Overview
January 17
No in-class
session
Ethics and Human Subjects
Protection
CITI training online
Rubin & Babbie, Chapter 16 & 17
January 24
Evaluation of Social Interventions
and Evidence-Based Practice
*CITI training due—bring
certificate to class
Rubin & Babbie, Ch. 1 & 2
Gambrill (2001) Social work: an authoritybased profession. Research on Social Work
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SOWO 510 – Spring 2014- Lippold
Practice, 11(2), 166-175.
Rosen, A. (2003). Evidence-based social work
practice: challenges and promise. Social Work
Research, 27(4), 197-208
January 31
*Quiz 1
Identifying Outcomes
Developing Research Questions
and Hypotheses
Logic Models
Rubin & Babbie, Ch. 5 & 6
Savaya, R., & Waysman, M. (2005). The logic
model: a tool for incorporating theory in
development and evaluation of programs.
Administration in Social Work, 29(2), 85 – 103.
Bartholomew L.K. & Mullen, P.D. (2011). Five
roles for using theory and evidence in the
design and testing of behavior change
interventions. Journal of Public Health
Dentistry,71, S20-S33.
February 7
*Quiz 2
Measurement of Outcomes and
Questionnaire Development
Rubin & Babbie, Ch. 7 & 8
February 14
*Quiz 3
Sampling
Internal/External Validity
Rubin & Babbie, Ch. 10 & 11
February 21
*Quiz 4
Surveys and Needs Assessments
Qualitative Research
Rubin & Babbie, Ch. 9, 14, & 19
February 28
*Quiz 5
*Midterm Exam
March 7
Research and Evaluation Designs
Bacallao, M., & Smokowski, P. (2009).
Assimilation and social anxiety in
undocumented Mexican immigrant families. In
T. M. Robinson (Ed.), Social anxiety:
Symptoms, causes and techniques (pp. 1-28).
Hauppauge, NY: Nova Science Publishers.
Rubin & Babbie, Ch. 11 & 12
Bresó, E., Schaufeli, W. B., & Salanova, M.
(2011). Can a self-efficacy-based intervention
decrease burnout, increase engagement, and
enhance performance? A quasi-experimental
study. Higher Education, 61(4), 339-355.
Feinberg, M. E., Jones, D. E., Kan, M. L., &
Goslin, M. C. (2010). Effects of family
foundations on parents and children: 3.5 years
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SOWO 510 – Spring 2014- Lippold
after baseline. Journal of Family Psychology,
24(5), 532-542.
Spoth, R., Redmond, C., Shin, C., Greenberg,
M., Clair, S., & Feinberg, M. (2007).
Substance-Use Outcomes at 18 Months Past
Baseline: The PROSPER Community–
University Partnership Trial. American Journal
of Preventive Medicine, 32(5), 395-402.
March 14 – NO CLASS Spring Break
March 21
*Quiz 6
Process/Summative Evaluations
Rubin & Babbie, Ch. 13
Aos, S., Lieb, R., Mayfield, J., Miller, M., &
Pennucci, A. (2004). Benefits and costs of
prevention and early intervention programs for
youth. Washington State Institute for Public
Policy (www.wsipp.wa.gov).
Helitzer, D., Yoon, S., Wallerstein, N., &
Garcia-Velarde, L. (2000). The role of process
evaluation in the training of facilitators for an
adolescent health education program. Journal
of School Health, 70(4), 141 – 147.
Valois, R. F., & Hoyle, T. B. (2000). Formative
evaluation results from the Mariner Project: a
coordinated school health pilot program.
Journal of School Health, 70(3), 95 – 103.
March 28
*Quiz 7 (distribute quiz 9 & 10)
Data Analysis, Part 1
April 11
*Quiz 8
Data Analysis, Part 2
Rubin & Babbie, Ch. 18
Supplemental readings TBD
April 18 – NO CLASS Holiday
April 25
*Quiz 9 & 10 due
*Final Exam
*Evaluation paper due
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