Innovation in Education and Criminal Justice: Measuring Fidelity of Implementation and Program Effectiveness

The arena of social program implementation has been divided over the issue of whether new programs should be disseminated and implemented with fidelity (i.e., with close correspondence to the original validated model) or implemented according to the idiosyncratic needs, values, and resources of the local adopting organization. To empirically examine this issue, seven innovative programs were examined. Each of the four educational and three criminal justice programs had been carefully evaluated and widely disseminated. Fidelity and effectiveness criteria were developed for each program. A multimethod data collection strategy included lengthy phone interviews, on-site interviews, and archival analysis of program adopters. The results indicated that well-operationalized programs are usually adopted and implemented with a degree of fidelity acceptable to program developers. Furthermore, this fidelity is positively correlated with the effectiveness of the adopted program. Implications for educational policy and construct measurement are discussed.