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- Leisure Program Planning and Delivery
Leisure Program Planning and Delivery will guide your students in
- employing a comprehensive three-step plan for successful program planning, implementing, and evaluating;
- learning the essentials of successful recreation programming theory through real-world case studies and examples; and
- building a professional programming portfolio through completion of class assignments.
Leisure Program Planning and Delivery will prepare recreation students for 21st-century programming. The book provides a comprehensive three-step plan for successful programming of services, program leadership, and understanding operational management of program systems in recreation and leisure service organizations. The scope of the book makes it practical either for preparing students and new professionals or for retooling your recreation program for today's challenges.
Grounded in contemporary professional practice and real-world applications, the book provides a systematic plan for students to learn the essentials of successful recreation programming, with examples of a variety of activities in community, outdoor, sport, cultural arts, and tourism sectors of the field. A companion Web site provides support for recreation professors with sample course syllabi, chapter review questions, PowerPoint presentations, and a test bank.
Each chapter of Leisure Program Planning and Delivery includes the following student-friendly features:
- Learning objectives
- An opening vignette with a real-world example tied to the theme of the chapter
- Photographs, tables, and figures
- Examples of specific chapter programming concepts taken from actual programming for outdoor, sport, tourism, cultural arts, and community recreation organizations
- A continuing case study highlighting the City of Westerville, Ohio, Parks and Recreation Department, a 2001 and 2007 Gold Medal Awardee
- A chapter summary keyed to the learning objectives
- A glossary of key terms
A bound-in CD-ROM contains chapter-by-chapter activities and assignments that apply programming concepts and professional best practices from the text; Internet sites for interactive learning; and forms for planning, implementing, and evaluating programs. At the end of the course, the student assignments can be combined to create a student programming portfolio.
Throughout the text, the City of Westerville, Ohio, Parks and Recreation Department—a 2001 and 2007 Gold Medal Awardee—serves as a case study. The case illustrates how program concepts and practices apply in the real world of recreation programming.
Leisure Program Planning and Delivery is the foundational text to prepare students and practicing professionals for situations they will encounter on the job. As a reference, the book contains the essentials of programming and offers cutting-edge programming techniques, support tools, and forms that will help professionals meet challenges in leisure programming, making it a text that students will keep long after their course work is completed.
Part I. Foundations of Programming
Chapter 1. The Importance of Programmed Leisure
Benefits of Leisure
Leisure and Well-Being
Programmed Leisure
Summary
Glossary
References
Chapter 2. The Profession of Leisure Programming
Organizational Settings
Personal Qualities
Professionalism
Summary
Glossary
References
Chapter 3. Programming Principles
Quality
Customer Service
Customer Satisfaction
Diversity
Public Good
Environmental Compatibility
Efficiency
Continuous Improvement
Summary
Glossary
References
Chapter 4. Leisure Program Components
Activity Areas
Program Formats
Putting the Components Together
Summary
Glossary
References
Chapter 5. Overview of the Program Planning Process
Program Models
Program Planning Process
Summary
Glossary
References
Part II. Planning Preparations
Chapter 6. Understanding Your Organization and Community
Philosophy and Values
Vision
Network of Individual Constituents
Network of Group Constituents
Summary
Glossary
References
Chapter 7. Assessing Patrons' Program Needs
Methods of Needs Assessments
Identification, Interpretation, and Utilization of Data
Conducting a Needs Assessment
Uses of a Needs Assessment
From Needs Assessment to Marketing Plan
Summary
Glossary
References
Chapter 8. Program Goals and Objectives
Program Rationale
Formulating Goals
Preparing Objectives
Summary
Glossary
References
Chapter 9. The Program Plan
Purposes of a Program Plan
Types of Program Plans
Elements of a Program Plan
The Role of Program Life Cycles
Summary
Glossary
References
Part III. Program Implementation
Chapter 10. Making Operational Decisions
Budgeting
Facility Usage and Coordination
Program Communication
Program Policies
Summary
Glossary
References
Chapter 11. Leading and Supervising Programs
Determining Staffing Needs
Expectations for Program Staff
Recruiting, Training, and Retaining Staff
Summary
Glossary
References
Chapter 12. Program Monitoring
The Importance of Program Monitoring
Specific Program Monitoring Systems
Other Program Monitoring Systems
Summary
Glossary
References
Chapter 13. Managing Risk in Leisure Programs
Developing a Risk Management Plan
Conducting Programs With Care
Supervising Participant Behavior
Summary
Glossary
References
Part IV. Program Evaluation
Chapter 14. Evaluation Approaches
Timetables for Evaluation
Rationale for Evaluation
Obstacles to Evaluation
Types of Evaluation
Developing an Evaluation System
Summary
Glossary
References
Chapter 15. Evaluation Steps
Step 1: Preparing an Evaluation Proposal
Step 2: Designing the Study
Step 3: Selecting a Sample
Step 4: Collecting Information
Step 5: Interpreting the Information Gathered
Step 6: Preparing the Final Report
Step 7: Putting the Findings Into Action
Summary
Glossary
References
Ruth V. Russell, ReD, is a full professor in the department of recreation, park, and tourism studies at Indiana University. She is a former trustee of the National Recreation and Park Association and a former president of the Society of Park and Recreation Educators. She has programming experience with San Diego Recreation and Parks Department, San Diego-Imperial County Girl Scout Council, a variety of Girl Scout camps, the Book Works retail store, Allied Gardens, and Chateau La Jolla Retirement Complexes. Dr. Russell is the author of numerous textbooks, technical reports, book chapters, and journal articles pertaining to recreation program planning.
Lynn M. Jamieson, ReD, is chair and full professor in the department of recreation, park, and tourism studies at Indiana University. Previously, she served as curriculum coordinator of the recreation administration program at California Polytechnic State University and spent 12 years in administrative positions as a recreation administrator, with special emphasis on recreational sport management. She has coauthored four texts and more than 50 articles about various aspects of management in leisure services.
Appropriate staffing, funding, integrity vital to effective program evaluation
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
Many details must be considered when developing such a plan. Foremost are the elements of staffing, funding, and timing, as well as considerations for integrity and ethics. Overall, these are managed through a set of guidelines for establishing an evaluation system (see the checklist below).
- Link evaluation projects. Specific efforts to evaluate specific programs should be connected in an interwoven system that focuses on a joint and coordinated effort. This requires open communication among programmers and a transparent vision for organization-wide evaluation. For example, information collected in a summative evaluation for one program might be helpful when planning an evaluation project for another program. Or questionnaires prepared for one program's evaluation might also be used to evaluate another program. Individual program evaluations should answer questions about program service success for the entire organization. Overall, are you achieving your mission?
- Gain administrative support. Your supervisors should be involved in planning specific evaluation projects as well as the entire evaluation system. Also, an advisory committee may be useful in helping with individual evaluation projects and overseeing the overall evaluation system for the organization. Communication with administrators or an advisory group can help you develop insights and gain commitment to the study. For example, organization directors may be crucial for getting the cooperation of other program staff for an evaluation effort. Involving them will also mean a greater likelihood that the results from the evaluation will be used to improve programs and upgrade program policies.
- Designate staff. Your organization should designate a person who is ultimately responsible for program evaluation. This is essential for any coordinated and systematic evaluation effort. Sometimes the programmers themselves may fill this role, or when more sensitivity is needed, outside consultants or research specialists may be called in. As well, sometimes a staff member is appointed to oversee the organization's entire evaluation system, or an individual is designated for a specific program evaluation project.
Ideally, persons responsible for evaluation should be well versed in both qualitative and quantitative inquiry methods, should be able to analyze and interpret data, and should have excellent written and verbal communication skills (Russell, 2005). They should also be able to work objectively, not trying to prove a particular finding or distort or promote a specific conclusion. As well, they should be thorough, meticulous, and able to design and carry out evaluation studies using precise methods in order for the results to have any real value to the organization.
- Involve program participants. There are many reasons for involving program participants in evaluation. Involving them early and often can help them gain understanding of what the evaluation is all about, ultimately increasing their support for the study and the program. Program participants can learn why the evaluation is being conducted and how it will proceed. This may help them feel less threatened. It will also help them understand what the program is trying to accomplish. Best of all, including participants in program evaluation can vastly improve the evaluator's understanding of the worth of the program.
- Define roles and clarify authority structures. At the outset, those involved in an evaluation project-administrators, staff, and participants-should be very clear with each other about what is expected from them. The scope and limits of their roles need to be declared, ideally in written form. This not only helps ensure completeness-the elimination of gaps in the evaluation study-but also helps solve disagreements if they arise.
- Provide adequate funding. Costs of evaluation should be included in organizational operations budgets. Depending on their scope and method, evaluations can potentially be expensive. Personnel costs, in particular, must be considered in an evaluation budget because they are often the major expense category. Also, some supplies can be purchased inexpensively or are free, but others will require specifically earmarked funds. For example, some equipment, such as computers, may already be available, but specialized software, such as statistical and graphing programs, may need to be purchased. To augment organization-provided general operations budgets, grants can be a source of evaluation funding. In fact, most grants that fund programs require an evaluation component in the grant proposal. Regional foundations and state, provincial, and federal government agencies will sometimes fund entire evaluation studies. Evaluation expenses that should be included in an organization's budget or grant proposal include the following:
• Sample selection costs
• Travel expenses for interviewer(s)
• Materials costs for pretesting the evaluation procedures
• Supervisory costs for hiring an outside consultant and overseeing his or her work
• Staff training costs
• Labor and material costs for data entry
• Analyst costs for preparing tabulations and special data analyses
• Labor and materials costs for report preparation
• Telephone charges, postage, reproduction, and printing costs
- Ensure adequate time. Evaluation takes time. Some projects require several months to complete at a certain time of year, while others may take only a day and can be done during any season. For example, if you are interested in assessing downhill skiers' satisfaction with instructional programs at the ski resort, then administering a questionnaire to participants may take only a couple of days, but it will need to be done during the winter.
As well, since evaluators and decision makers have different time schedule demands, you should establish an agreed-upon time frame for the completion of an evaluation project (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Estimate how much time is needed for recruitment of study participants, data collection, data analysis, preparation of the final report, and so on. Planning for evaluation therefore requires development of a timetable, or time budget (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Both calendar and clock time need to be budgeted. A mistake many evaluators make is underestimating the time needed, resulting in late delivery of the report or missing the deadline altogether. We recommend that the time budget include a 20 percent "extra time" factor to compensate for this. - Provide useful feedback. Programmers are most appreciated by supervisors, advisory and policy groups, participants, and other program staff when the information gathered in the evaluation is perceived to be valuable. For example, suppose you wish to determine guest satisfaction with state park cabins. Measuring overall satisfaction is important, but even more useful information is possible by measuring specific satisfaction with such details as cabin design, cleanliness, linen service, the registration system, and proximity to park activities. These more targeted results increase the evaluation's value to a wider array of staff.
- Prepare an evaluation project proposal. An evaluation plan benefits from documented decisions about the purpose of a project and how it will be carried out. A formal proposal-a written description of the intentions of the evaluation-is useful for communicating your plans to others in the organization. In addition, the process of writing a proposal helps you think through the research steps you'll follow, helping you be more efficient in carrying out the study. It is much easier to find flaws in the evaluation project and correct them before beginning to collect information than it is to discover and correct problems after you have started.
- Keep evaluation projects going. Successful evaluation projects start out well organized and stay on track through the finish. Usually the person who develops the project proposal is the one who has the responsibility of seeing it through to completion. This might mean taking care of such logistics as recruiting respondents to questionnaires, printing and distributing questionnaires, monitoring the evaluation budget, and seeing that the final report is timely.
- Conduct evaluations ethically and with integrity. Integrity and ethics are essential for conducting a valid evaluation. Integrity refers to the validity of the information that is collected to determine the value of a program. Ethics is concerned with the treatment of the participants in the evaluation process.
First, how can you maintain evaluation integrity? Those who use the evaluation results want the information to be accurate; they apply what Weiss and Bucuvalas (1980) call truth tests in deciding how seriously to pay attention to an evaluation outcome-or its validity. Typically, a program evaluation is valid if it is "true, credible, and right" (House, 1980, p. 250). This means the nature of the evaluation process, the study design, the data gathering, and the way results are reported are honest. Both the evaluation (action) and the evaluator (person) must be perceived as trustworthy for the evaluation to have high validity (Russell, 2005). Only an honestly conducted evaluation can provide useful information and help an organization achieve its goals. The box on this page provides two illustrations of the negative effect an evaluation that lacks integrity can have.
Second, what are sound ethical practices in evaluation? Conducting ethical evaluations requires doing everything possible to treat the people, programs, and organizations studied graciously and honorably, including providing an environment that is safe and free of discrimination. One way to accomplish this is through informed consent-communication that ensures a potential evaluation respondent has sufficient information to decide whether to participate in the study. Typically, the respondent reads and signs a statement agreeing to participate in the study. The statement should describe the essential details of the study, including an explanation of the procedures, the potential benefits and risks of participation, the participant's rights to confidentiality, and the choice to participate. When children are involved in an evaluation, parents or guardians should sign an informed consent. Government-sponsored evaluations, as well as most professional associations, require informed consent.
Another factor that helps ensure an ethical evaluation is an approving authority. An approving authority, such as a special committee within or outside the organization, can review evaluation project proposals for fair treatment of the people and programs studied as well as for honorably collected information. For example, universities all have institutional review committees that must give approval for studies that use human subjects. Elementary and secondary school systems have committees to review studies that outside groups, such as park and recreation agencies, want to conduct within the schools. Similarly, hospitals have review committees that must give approval for studies done with patients.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Distinctiveness, memorability a must when naming rec programs
Naming a program focuses on developing “the hook”—something that gains attention. Your task is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest.
You may be tempted to think selecting a title or label for a program is easy and of no real significance. Yet stop and think about your own behavior when you glance through a recreation program brochure, skim an advertisement, or scan a Web site. Most people allocate only a few seconds when looking for program information. They are searching for things of interest to them. If a title catches their attention, they'll read more thoroughly (McCarville, 2002). So, your task in naming programs is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest and attention (see the box on this page for an example).
Names represent dominant cues to customers. Thus, a program's name may be one of the most important pieces of information you can offer to prospective patrons. Names represent "the hook that hangs the brand on the product" (Ries & Trout, 1986, p. 71). Consider the name Exercise Center. What happens to your interest when the name is changed to Weight and Stress Control Center? The program is no longer about exerting physical energy; it is about getting body weight and stress under control. Now the "brand" is wellness rather than effort.
Another example is the leisure service agency that renamed an adult swim program for novices. The new title? Swimming for the Absolutely Terrified. The new choice was not only more descriptive but also more memorable. As a result, the program increased in popularity, and the agency has expanded the "absolutely terrified" naming theme to include programs on learning to ski, using computers and the Internet, and high school diploma exam preparation (McCarville, 2002).
From a communication perspective, naming a program focuses on developing "the hook"-something that gains attention. The most successful hooks focus on benefits (McCarville, 2002). The logic is simple: Programs that are named according to what the patrons want will attract more patron attention. Useful program names tell what the service will do and make it easy for patrons to visualize the benefits (Burton & Purvis, 1996).
Here is some specific advice on naming programs. Essentially, in order to be effective communication tools, names should pass four basic tests (Berry & Parasuraman, 1991). The first test is distinctiveness. The program name must clearly distinguish itself from other programs. The term aerobics class, for example, is descriptive but doesn't distinguish one fitness program from another. Instead, why not name this program Latin Explosion, Cardio Studio, or Fitness Jumpstart (Division of Recreational Sports, 2004)?
The second naming test is relevance. The program name needs to provide an image that is meaningful to the target constituency. The name must also be an honest representation of the program itself. For example, the titles Lifeguard Instructor Training and Water Safety Instructor Training provide a meaningful message about the differences in the two programs (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006). Memorability is the third test. Memorability refers to how easily the name is understood and remembered. This requires that the name be creatively interesting and to the point. Clutter and dullness are not memorable. For example, Owl Prowl, Classy Casting, and Rip Roaring Rapids are easy to remember because of the rhyming and alliteration (Bloomington Parks & Recreation, 2004).
For the fourth test, the name must be flexible enough to allow easy changes in program content or format over time. For instance, a program titled Yoga or Pilates Sampler enables programmers to alternate which fitness activity is offered from season to season without having to change the program's name (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006).
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Motivation strategies keep recreation program participants coming back
A good staff member should be able to keep program participants energized and motivated.
Another important function of staff is energizing participants, providing direction, and helping sustain recreational behavior (Russell, 2005). This is referred to as motivation. Motivation encompasses efforts to initiate, sustain, and stop behavior.
Because motivation is something within a person, we cannot describe the motivation of others directly. But research allows us to understand some principles of motivation. For example, positive reinforcement of a behavior increases the likelihood that the same behavior will be repeated, whereas negative reinforcement makes it more likely the same behavior will not be repeated.
There are two types of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic motivation means the behavior itself is positively reinforcing. Intrinsic motivation is doing something simply because it is interesting and personally meaningful. Ideally, all recreation participation is intrinsically motivated. Indeed, as Iso-Ahola (1982) explains, the participant initially chooses a recreation activity with the expectation that the activity will provide a feeling of freedom of choice and competence. On the other hand, extrinsic motivation comes from outside the behavior. The positive reinforcement is artificially established-a prize can be won, recognition can be awarded, weight can be lost, others can be impressed. Recreation program staff are able to manage participant motivation through both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.
Increasing intrinsic motivation revolves around strategies to increase participants' perceptions of success. Here are some suggestions (Weinberg & Gould, 1995; Bateman & Snell, 2002; Russell, 2005):
- Match skill levels of participants with the challenges required in the activity (e.g., use higher-classified white-water rivers for experienced boaters); see the box on page 163.
- Use verbal and nonverbal praise; this is especially important for participants who receive little recognition otherwise.
- Involve participants in decision making; people perceive they have greater competency when they make their own decisions, which in turn increases intrinsic motivation.
- Share the power with participants; confidence in one's worth is profoundly motivating.
- Be sure participants are ready to participate in the program (i.e., they have the knowledge and skills to enjoy a particular activity).
- Enhance the appropriateness of physical properties of the program setting (e.g., lower the lighting, turn up the music volume, and watch them dance!).
- Develop programs that include a planned progression. Some common examples are merit badges in scouting; A and B teams in sports; first, second, and third seats in an orchestra; and white, brown, and black belts in karate.
Using extrinsic motivation to guide recreation program interest and behavior is also common, especially when intrinsic motivation is not present. Here is a sampling of suggestions (Russell, 2005) for extrinsically motivating participation in recreation programs:
- Emphasize the status of the activity. Provide membership cards, mugs, uniforms, patches, T-shirts, well-maintained equipment, and other status symbols.
- Carefully employ well-planned and well-controlled competition. Although it runs the risk of going too far and becoming demotivating, competition can be used as an interest builder (see "How to Keep Competition's Motivational Potential" on this page).
- Capitalize on people's desire to be part of a group. Peer pressure is a motivator in much the same way as announcing, "Only a few tickets left."
- Offer prizes and rewards directly associated with the activity; blue ribbons, door prizes, gold stars, free gifts, coupons, and certificates are the most common.
In preparing to implement a recreation program, consider the role of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation techniques. If they would help ensure the safety and enjoyment of the experience, try to acquire staff with these abilities or this training.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Appropriate staffing, funding, integrity vital to effective program evaluation
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
Many details must be considered when developing such a plan. Foremost are the elements of staffing, funding, and timing, as well as considerations for integrity and ethics. Overall, these are managed through a set of guidelines for establishing an evaluation system (see the checklist below).
- Link evaluation projects. Specific efforts to evaluate specific programs should be connected in an interwoven system that focuses on a joint and coordinated effort. This requires open communication among programmers and a transparent vision for organization-wide evaluation. For example, information collected in a summative evaluation for one program might be helpful when planning an evaluation project for another program. Or questionnaires prepared for one program's evaluation might also be used to evaluate another program. Individual program evaluations should answer questions about program service success for the entire organization. Overall, are you achieving your mission?
- Gain administrative support. Your supervisors should be involved in planning specific evaluation projects as well as the entire evaluation system. Also, an advisory committee may be useful in helping with individual evaluation projects and overseeing the overall evaluation system for the organization. Communication with administrators or an advisory group can help you develop insights and gain commitment to the study. For example, organization directors may be crucial for getting the cooperation of other program staff for an evaluation effort. Involving them will also mean a greater likelihood that the results from the evaluation will be used to improve programs and upgrade program policies.
- Designate staff. Your organization should designate a person who is ultimately responsible for program evaluation. This is essential for any coordinated and systematic evaluation effort. Sometimes the programmers themselves may fill this role, or when more sensitivity is needed, outside consultants or research specialists may be called in. As well, sometimes a staff member is appointed to oversee the organization's entire evaluation system, or an individual is designated for a specific program evaluation project.
Ideally, persons responsible for evaluation should be well versed in both qualitative and quantitative inquiry methods, should be able to analyze and interpret data, and should have excellent written and verbal communication skills (Russell, 2005). They should also be able to work objectively, not trying to prove a particular finding or distort or promote a specific conclusion. As well, they should be thorough, meticulous, and able to design and carry out evaluation studies using precise methods in order for the results to have any real value to the organization.
- Involve program participants. There are many reasons for involving program participants in evaluation. Involving them early and often can help them gain understanding of what the evaluation is all about, ultimately increasing their support for the study and the program. Program participants can learn why the evaluation is being conducted and how it will proceed. This may help them feel less threatened. It will also help them understand what the program is trying to accomplish. Best of all, including participants in program evaluation can vastly improve the evaluator's understanding of the worth of the program.
- Define roles and clarify authority structures. At the outset, those involved in an evaluation project-administrators, staff, and participants-should be very clear with each other about what is expected from them. The scope and limits of their roles need to be declared, ideally in written form. This not only helps ensure completeness-the elimination of gaps in the evaluation study-but also helps solve disagreements if they arise.
- Provide adequate funding. Costs of evaluation should be included in organizational operations budgets. Depending on their scope and method, evaluations can potentially be expensive. Personnel costs, in particular, must be considered in an evaluation budget because they are often the major expense category. Also, some supplies can be purchased inexpensively or are free, but others will require specifically earmarked funds. For example, some equipment, such as computers, may already be available, but specialized software, such as statistical and graphing programs, may need to be purchased. To augment organization-provided general operations budgets, grants can be a source of evaluation funding. In fact, most grants that fund programs require an evaluation component in the grant proposal. Regional foundations and state, provincial, and federal government agencies will sometimes fund entire evaluation studies. Evaluation expenses that should be included in an organization's budget or grant proposal include the following:
• Sample selection costs
• Travel expenses for interviewer(s)
• Materials costs for pretesting the evaluation procedures
• Supervisory costs for hiring an outside consultant and overseeing his or her work
• Staff training costs
• Labor and material costs for data entry
• Analyst costs for preparing tabulations and special data analyses
• Labor and materials costs for report preparation
• Telephone charges, postage, reproduction, and printing costs
- Ensure adequate time. Evaluation takes time. Some projects require several months to complete at a certain time of year, while others may take only a day and can be done during any season. For example, if you are interested in assessing downhill skiers' satisfaction with instructional programs at the ski resort, then administering a questionnaire to participants may take only a couple of days, but it will need to be done during the winter.
As well, since evaluators and decision makers have different time schedule demands, you should establish an agreed-upon time frame for the completion of an evaluation project (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Estimate how much time is needed for recruitment of study participants, data collection, data analysis, preparation of the final report, and so on. Planning for evaluation therefore requires development of a timetable, or time budget (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Both calendar and clock time need to be budgeted. A mistake many evaluators make is underestimating the time needed, resulting in late delivery of the report or missing the deadline altogether. We recommend that the time budget include a 20 percent "extra time" factor to compensate for this. - Provide useful feedback. Programmers are most appreciated by supervisors, advisory and policy groups, participants, and other program staff when the information gathered in the evaluation is perceived to be valuable. For example, suppose you wish to determine guest satisfaction with state park cabins. Measuring overall satisfaction is important, but even more useful information is possible by measuring specific satisfaction with such details as cabin design, cleanliness, linen service, the registration system, and proximity to park activities. These more targeted results increase the evaluation's value to a wider array of staff.
- Prepare an evaluation project proposal. An evaluation plan benefits from documented decisions about the purpose of a project and how it will be carried out. A formal proposal-a written description of the intentions of the evaluation-is useful for communicating your plans to others in the organization. In addition, the process of writing a proposal helps you think through the research steps you'll follow, helping you be more efficient in carrying out the study. It is much easier to find flaws in the evaluation project and correct them before beginning to collect information than it is to discover and correct problems after you have started.
- Keep evaluation projects going. Successful evaluation projects start out well organized and stay on track through the finish. Usually the person who develops the project proposal is the one who has the responsibility of seeing it through to completion. This might mean taking care of such logistics as recruiting respondents to questionnaires, printing and distributing questionnaires, monitoring the evaluation budget, and seeing that the final report is timely.
- Conduct evaluations ethically and with integrity. Integrity and ethics are essential for conducting a valid evaluation. Integrity refers to the validity of the information that is collected to determine the value of a program. Ethics is concerned with the treatment of the participants in the evaluation process.
First, how can you maintain evaluation integrity? Those who use the evaluation results want the information to be accurate; they apply what Weiss and Bucuvalas (1980) call truth tests in deciding how seriously to pay attention to an evaluation outcome-or its validity. Typically, a program evaluation is valid if it is "true, credible, and right" (House, 1980, p. 250). This means the nature of the evaluation process, the study design, the data gathering, and the way results are reported are honest. Both the evaluation (action) and the evaluator (person) must be perceived as trustworthy for the evaluation to have high validity (Russell, 2005). Only an honestly conducted evaluation can provide useful information and help an organization achieve its goals. The box on this page provides two illustrations of the negative effect an evaluation that lacks integrity can have.
Second, what are sound ethical practices in evaluation? Conducting ethical evaluations requires doing everything possible to treat the people, programs, and organizations studied graciously and honorably, including providing an environment that is safe and free of discrimination. One way to accomplish this is through informed consent-communication that ensures a potential evaluation respondent has sufficient information to decide whether to participate in the study. Typically, the respondent reads and signs a statement agreeing to participate in the study. The statement should describe the essential details of the study, including an explanation of the procedures, the potential benefits and risks of participation, the participant's rights to confidentiality, and the choice to participate. When children are involved in an evaluation, parents or guardians should sign an informed consent. Government-sponsored evaluations, as well as most professional associations, require informed consent.
Another factor that helps ensure an ethical evaluation is an approving authority. An approving authority, such as a special committee within or outside the organization, can review evaluation project proposals for fair treatment of the people and programs studied as well as for honorably collected information. For example, universities all have institutional review committees that must give approval for studies that use human subjects. Elementary and secondary school systems have committees to review studies that outside groups, such as park and recreation agencies, want to conduct within the schools. Similarly, hospitals have review committees that must give approval for studies done with patients.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Distinctiveness, memorability a must when naming rec programs
Naming a program focuses on developing “the hook”—something that gains attention. Your task is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest.
You may be tempted to think selecting a title or label for a program is easy and of no real significance. Yet stop and think about your own behavior when you glance through a recreation program brochure, skim an advertisement, or scan a Web site. Most people allocate only a few seconds when looking for program information. They are searching for things of interest to them. If a title catches their attention, they'll read more thoroughly (McCarville, 2002). So, your task in naming programs is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest and attention (see the box on this page for an example).
Names represent dominant cues to customers. Thus, a program's name may be one of the most important pieces of information you can offer to prospective patrons. Names represent "the hook that hangs the brand on the product" (Ries & Trout, 1986, p. 71). Consider the name Exercise Center. What happens to your interest when the name is changed to Weight and Stress Control Center? The program is no longer about exerting physical energy; it is about getting body weight and stress under control. Now the "brand" is wellness rather than effort.
Another example is the leisure service agency that renamed an adult swim program for novices. The new title? Swimming for the Absolutely Terrified. The new choice was not only more descriptive but also more memorable. As a result, the program increased in popularity, and the agency has expanded the "absolutely terrified" naming theme to include programs on learning to ski, using computers and the Internet, and high school diploma exam preparation (McCarville, 2002).
From a communication perspective, naming a program focuses on developing "the hook"-something that gains attention. The most successful hooks focus on benefits (McCarville, 2002). The logic is simple: Programs that are named according to what the patrons want will attract more patron attention. Useful program names tell what the service will do and make it easy for patrons to visualize the benefits (Burton & Purvis, 1996).
Here is some specific advice on naming programs. Essentially, in order to be effective communication tools, names should pass four basic tests (Berry & Parasuraman, 1991). The first test is distinctiveness. The program name must clearly distinguish itself from other programs. The term aerobics class, for example, is descriptive but doesn't distinguish one fitness program from another. Instead, why not name this program Latin Explosion, Cardio Studio, or Fitness Jumpstart (Division of Recreational Sports, 2004)?
The second naming test is relevance. The program name needs to provide an image that is meaningful to the target constituency. The name must also be an honest representation of the program itself. For example, the titles Lifeguard Instructor Training and Water Safety Instructor Training provide a meaningful message about the differences in the two programs (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006). Memorability is the third test. Memorability refers to how easily the name is understood and remembered. This requires that the name be creatively interesting and to the point. Clutter and dullness are not memorable. For example, Owl Prowl, Classy Casting, and Rip Roaring Rapids are easy to remember because of the rhyming and alliteration (Bloomington Parks & Recreation, 2004).
For the fourth test, the name must be flexible enough to allow easy changes in program content or format over time. For instance, a program titled Yoga or Pilates Sampler enables programmers to alternate which fitness activity is offered from season to season without having to change the program's name (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006).
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Motivation strategies keep recreation program participants coming back
A good staff member should be able to keep program participants energized and motivated.
Another important function of staff is energizing participants, providing direction, and helping sustain recreational behavior (Russell, 2005). This is referred to as motivation. Motivation encompasses efforts to initiate, sustain, and stop behavior.
Because motivation is something within a person, we cannot describe the motivation of others directly. But research allows us to understand some principles of motivation. For example, positive reinforcement of a behavior increases the likelihood that the same behavior will be repeated, whereas negative reinforcement makes it more likely the same behavior will not be repeated.
There are two types of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic motivation means the behavior itself is positively reinforcing. Intrinsic motivation is doing something simply because it is interesting and personally meaningful. Ideally, all recreation participation is intrinsically motivated. Indeed, as Iso-Ahola (1982) explains, the participant initially chooses a recreation activity with the expectation that the activity will provide a feeling of freedom of choice and competence. On the other hand, extrinsic motivation comes from outside the behavior. The positive reinforcement is artificially established-a prize can be won, recognition can be awarded, weight can be lost, others can be impressed. Recreation program staff are able to manage participant motivation through both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.
Increasing intrinsic motivation revolves around strategies to increase participants' perceptions of success. Here are some suggestions (Weinberg & Gould, 1995; Bateman & Snell, 2002; Russell, 2005):
- Match skill levels of participants with the challenges required in the activity (e.g., use higher-classified white-water rivers for experienced boaters); see the box on page 163.
- Use verbal and nonverbal praise; this is especially important for participants who receive little recognition otherwise.
- Involve participants in decision making; people perceive they have greater competency when they make their own decisions, which in turn increases intrinsic motivation.
- Share the power with participants; confidence in one's worth is profoundly motivating.
- Be sure participants are ready to participate in the program (i.e., they have the knowledge and skills to enjoy a particular activity).
- Enhance the appropriateness of physical properties of the program setting (e.g., lower the lighting, turn up the music volume, and watch them dance!).
- Develop programs that include a planned progression. Some common examples are merit badges in scouting; A and B teams in sports; first, second, and third seats in an orchestra; and white, brown, and black belts in karate.
Using extrinsic motivation to guide recreation program interest and behavior is also common, especially when intrinsic motivation is not present. Here is a sampling of suggestions (Russell, 2005) for extrinsically motivating participation in recreation programs:
- Emphasize the status of the activity. Provide membership cards, mugs, uniforms, patches, T-shirts, well-maintained equipment, and other status symbols.
- Carefully employ well-planned and well-controlled competition. Although it runs the risk of going too far and becoming demotivating, competition can be used as an interest builder (see "How to Keep Competition's Motivational Potential" on this page).
- Capitalize on people's desire to be part of a group. Peer pressure is a motivator in much the same way as announcing, "Only a few tickets left."
- Offer prizes and rewards directly associated with the activity; blue ribbons, door prizes, gold stars, free gifts, coupons, and certificates are the most common.
In preparing to implement a recreation program, consider the role of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation techniques. If they would help ensure the safety and enjoyment of the experience, try to acquire staff with these abilities or this training.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Appropriate staffing, funding, integrity vital to effective program evaluation
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
Many details must be considered when developing such a plan. Foremost are the elements of staffing, funding, and timing, as well as considerations for integrity and ethics. Overall, these are managed through a set of guidelines for establishing an evaluation system (see the checklist below).
- Link evaluation projects. Specific efforts to evaluate specific programs should be connected in an interwoven system that focuses on a joint and coordinated effort. This requires open communication among programmers and a transparent vision for organization-wide evaluation. For example, information collected in a summative evaluation for one program might be helpful when planning an evaluation project for another program. Or questionnaires prepared for one program's evaluation might also be used to evaluate another program. Individual program evaluations should answer questions about program service success for the entire organization. Overall, are you achieving your mission?
- Gain administrative support. Your supervisors should be involved in planning specific evaluation projects as well as the entire evaluation system. Also, an advisory committee may be useful in helping with individual evaluation projects and overseeing the overall evaluation system for the organization. Communication with administrators or an advisory group can help you develop insights and gain commitment to the study. For example, organization directors may be crucial for getting the cooperation of other program staff for an evaluation effort. Involving them will also mean a greater likelihood that the results from the evaluation will be used to improve programs and upgrade program policies.
- Designate staff. Your organization should designate a person who is ultimately responsible for program evaluation. This is essential for any coordinated and systematic evaluation effort. Sometimes the programmers themselves may fill this role, or when more sensitivity is needed, outside consultants or research specialists may be called in. As well, sometimes a staff member is appointed to oversee the organization's entire evaluation system, or an individual is designated for a specific program evaluation project.
Ideally, persons responsible for evaluation should be well versed in both qualitative and quantitative inquiry methods, should be able to analyze and interpret data, and should have excellent written and verbal communication skills (Russell, 2005). They should also be able to work objectively, not trying to prove a particular finding or distort or promote a specific conclusion. As well, they should be thorough, meticulous, and able to design and carry out evaluation studies using precise methods in order for the results to have any real value to the organization.
- Involve program participants. There are many reasons for involving program participants in evaluation. Involving them early and often can help them gain understanding of what the evaluation is all about, ultimately increasing their support for the study and the program. Program participants can learn why the evaluation is being conducted and how it will proceed. This may help them feel less threatened. It will also help them understand what the program is trying to accomplish. Best of all, including participants in program evaluation can vastly improve the evaluator's understanding of the worth of the program.
- Define roles and clarify authority structures. At the outset, those involved in an evaluation project-administrators, staff, and participants-should be very clear with each other about what is expected from them. The scope and limits of their roles need to be declared, ideally in written form. This not only helps ensure completeness-the elimination of gaps in the evaluation study-but also helps solve disagreements if they arise.
- Provide adequate funding. Costs of evaluation should be included in organizational operations budgets. Depending on their scope and method, evaluations can potentially be expensive. Personnel costs, in particular, must be considered in an evaluation budget because they are often the major expense category. Also, some supplies can be purchased inexpensively or are free, but others will require specifically earmarked funds. For example, some equipment, such as computers, may already be available, but specialized software, such as statistical and graphing programs, may need to be purchased. To augment organization-provided general operations budgets, grants can be a source of evaluation funding. In fact, most grants that fund programs require an evaluation component in the grant proposal. Regional foundations and state, provincial, and federal government agencies will sometimes fund entire evaluation studies. Evaluation expenses that should be included in an organization's budget or grant proposal include the following:
• Sample selection costs
• Travel expenses for interviewer(s)
• Materials costs for pretesting the evaluation procedures
• Supervisory costs for hiring an outside consultant and overseeing his or her work
• Staff training costs
• Labor and material costs for data entry
• Analyst costs for preparing tabulations and special data analyses
• Labor and materials costs for report preparation
• Telephone charges, postage, reproduction, and printing costs
- Ensure adequate time. Evaluation takes time. Some projects require several months to complete at a certain time of year, while others may take only a day and can be done during any season. For example, if you are interested in assessing downhill skiers' satisfaction with instructional programs at the ski resort, then administering a questionnaire to participants may take only a couple of days, but it will need to be done during the winter.
As well, since evaluators and decision makers have different time schedule demands, you should establish an agreed-upon time frame for the completion of an evaluation project (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Estimate how much time is needed for recruitment of study participants, data collection, data analysis, preparation of the final report, and so on. Planning for evaluation therefore requires development of a timetable, or time budget (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Both calendar and clock time need to be budgeted. A mistake many evaluators make is underestimating the time needed, resulting in late delivery of the report or missing the deadline altogether. We recommend that the time budget include a 20 percent "extra time" factor to compensate for this. - Provide useful feedback. Programmers are most appreciated by supervisors, advisory and policy groups, participants, and other program staff when the information gathered in the evaluation is perceived to be valuable. For example, suppose you wish to determine guest satisfaction with state park cabins. Measuring overall satisfaction is important, but even more useful information is possible by measuring specific satisfaction with such details as cabin design, cleanliness, linen service, the registration system, and proximity to park activities. These more targeted results increase the evaluation's value to a wider array of staff.
- Prepare an evaluation project proposal. An evaluation plan benefits from documented decisions about the purpose of a project and how it will be carried out. A formal proposal-a written description of the intentions of the evaluation-is useful for communicating your plans to others in the organization. In addition, the process of writing a proposal helps you think through the research steps you'll follow, helping you be more efficient in carrying out the study. It is much easier to find flaws in the evaluation project and correct them before beginning to collect information than it is to discover and correct problems after you have started.
- Keep evaluation projects going. Successful evaluation projects start out well organized and stay on track through the finish. Usually the person who develops the project proposal is the one who has the responsibility of seeing it through to completion. This might mean taking care of such logistics as recruiting respondents to questionnaires, printing and distributing questionnaires, monitoring the evaluation budget, and seeing that the final report is timely.
- Conduct evaluations ethically and with integrity. Integrity and ethics are essential for conducting a valid evaluation. Integrity refers to the validity of the information that is collected to determine the value of a program. Ethics is concerned with the treatment of the participants in the evaluation process.
First, how can you maintain evaluation integrity? Those who use the evaluation results want the information to be accurate; they apply what Weiss and Bucuvalas (1980) call truth tests in deciding how seriously to pay attention to an evaluation outcome-or its validity. Typically, a program evaluation is valid if it is "true, credible, and right" (House, 1980, p. 250). This means the nature of the evaluation process, the study design, the data gathering, and the way results are reported are honest. Both the evaluation (action) and the evaluator (person) must be perceived as trustworthy for the evaluation to have high validity (Russell, 2005). Only an honestly conducted evaluation can provide useful information and help an organization achieve its goals. The box on this page provides two illustrations of the negative effect an evaluation that lacks integrity can have.
Second, what are sound ethical practices in evaluation? Conducting ethical evaluations requires doing everything possible to treat the people, programs, and organizations studied graciously and honorably, including providing an environment that is safe and free of discrimination. One way to accomplish this is through informed consent-communication that ensures a potential evaluation respondent has sufficient information to decide whether to participate in the study. Typically, the respondent reads and signs a statement agreeing to participate in the study. The statement should describe the essential details of the study, including an explanation of the procedures, the potential benefits and risks of participation, the participant's rights to confidentiality, and the choice to participate. When children are involved in an evaluation, parents or guardians should sign an informed consent. Government-sponsored evaluations, as well as most professional associations, require informed consent.
Another factor that helps ensure an ethical evaluation is an approving authority. An approving authority, such as a special committee within or outside the organization, can review evaluation project proposals for fair treatment of the people and programs studied as well as for honorably collected information. For example, universities all have institutional review committees that must give approval for studies that use human subjects. Elementary and secondary school systems have committees to review studies that outside groups, such as park and recreation agencies, want to conduct within the schools. Similarly, hospitals have review committees that must give approval for studies done with patients.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Distinctiveness, memorability a must when naming rec programs
Naming a program focuses on developing “the hook”—something that gains attention. Your task is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest.
You may be tempted to think selecting a title or label for a program is easy and of no real significance. Yet stop and think about your own behavior when you glance through a recreation program brochure, skim an advertisement, or scan a Web site. Most people allocate only a few seconds when looking for program information. They are searching for things of interest to them. If a title catches their attention, they'll read more thoroughly (McCarville, 2002). So, your task in naming programs is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest and attention (see the box on this page for an example).
Names represent dominant cues to customers. Thus, a program's name may be one of the most important pieces of information you can offer to prospective patrons. Names represent "the hook that hangs the brand on the product" (Ries & Trout, 1986, p. 71). Consider the name Exercise Center. What happens to your interest when the name is changed to Weight and Stress Control Center? The program is no longer about exerting physical energy; it is about getting body weight and stress under control. Now the "brand" is wellness rather than effort.
Another example is the leisure service agency that renamed an adult swim program for novices. The new title? Swimming for the Absolutely Terrified. The new choice was not only more descriptive but also more memorable. As a result, the program increased in popularity, and the agency has expanded the "absolutely terrified" naming theme to include programs on learning to ski, using computers and the Internet, and high school diploma exam preparation (McCarville, 2002).
From a communication perspective, naming a program focuses on developing "the hook"-something that gains attention. The most successful hooks focus on benefits (McCarville, 2002). The logic is simple: Programs that are named according to what the patrons want will attract more patron attention. Useful program names tell what the service will do and make it easy for patrons to visualize the benefits (Burton & Purvis, 1996).
Here is some specific advice on naming programs. Essentially, in order to be effective communication tools, names should pass four basic tests (Berry & Parasuraman, 1991). The first test is distinctiveness. The program name must clearly distinguish itself from other programs. The term aerobics class, for example, is descriptive but doesn't distinguish one fitness program from another. Instead, why not name this program Latin Explosion, Cardio Studio, or Fitness Jumpstart (Division of Recreational Sports, 2004)?
The second naming test is relevance. The program name needs to provide an image that is meaningful to the target constituency. The name must also be an honest representation of the program itself. For example, the titles Lifeguard Instructor Training and Water Safety Instructor Training provide a meaningful message about the differences in the two programs (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006). Memorability is the third test. Memorability refers to how easily the name is understood and remembered. This requires that the name be creatively interesting and to the point. Clutter and dullness are not memorable. For example, Owl Prowl, Classy Casting, and Rip Roaring Rapids are easy to remember because of the rhyming and alliteration (Bloomington Parks & Recreation, 2004).
For the fourth test, the name must be flexible enough to allow easy changes in program content or format over time. For instance, a program titled Yoga or Pilates Sampler enables programmers to alternate which fitness activity is offered from season to season without having to change the program's name (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006).
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Motivation strategies keep recreation program participants coming back
A good staff member should be able to keep program participants energized and motivated.
Another important function of staff is energizing participants, providing direction, and helping sustain recreational behavior (Russell, 2005). This is referred to as motivation. Motivation encompasses efforts to initiate, sustain, and stop behavior.
Because motivation is something within a person, we cannot describe the motivation of others directly. But research allows us to understand some principles of motivation. For example, positive reinforcement of a behavior increases the likelihood that the same behavior will be repeated, whereas negative reinforcement makes it more likely the same behavior will not be repeated.
There are two types of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic motivation means the behavior itself is positively reinforcing. Intrinsic motivation is doing something simply because it is interesting and personally meaningful. Ideally, all recreation participation is intrinsically motivated. Indeed, as Iso-Ahola (1982) explains, the participant initially chooses a recreation activity with the expectation that the activity will provide a feeling of freedom of choice and competence. On the other hand, extrinsic motivation comes from outside the behavior. The positive reinforcement is artificially established-a prize can be won, recognition can be awarded, weight can be lost, others can be impressed. Recreation program staff are able to manage participant motivation through both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.
Increasing intrinsic motivation revolves around strategies to increase participants' perceptions of success. Here are some suggestions (Weinberg & Gould, 1995; Bateman & Snell, 2002; Russell, 2005):
- Match skill levels of participants with the challenges required in the activity (e.g., use higher-classified white-water rivers for experienced boaters); see the box on page 163.
- Use verbal and nonverbal praise; this is especially important for participants who receive little recognition otherwise.
- Involve participants in decision making; people perceive they have greater competency when they make their own decisions, which in turn increases intrinsic motivation.
- Share the power with participants; confidence in one's worth is profoundly motivating.
- Be sure participants are ready to participate in the program (i.e., they have the knowledge and skills to enjoy a particular activity).
- Enhance the appropriateness of physical properties of the program setting (e.g., lower the lighting, turn up the music volume, and watch them dance!).
- Develop programs that include a planned progression. Some common examples are merit badges in scouting; A and B teams in sports; first, second, and third seats in an orchestra; and white, brown, and black belts in karate.
Using extrinsic motivation to guide recreation program interest and behavior is also common, especially when intrinsic motivation is not present. Here is a sampling of suggestions (Russell, 2005) for extrinsically motivating participation in recreation programs:
- Emphasize the status of the activity. Provide membership cards, mugs, uniforms, patches, T-shirts, well-maintained equipment, and other status symbols.
- Carefully employ well-planned and well-controlled competition. Although it runs the risk of going too far and becoming demotivating, competition can be used as an interest builder (see "How to Keep Competition's Motivational Potential" on this page).
- Capitalize on people's desire to be part of a group. Peer pressure is a motivator in much the same way as announcing, "Only a few tickets left."
- Offer prizes and rewards directly associated with the activity; blue ribbons, door prizes, gold stars, free gifts, coupons, and certificates are the most common.
In preparing to implement a recreation program, consider the role of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation techniques. If they would help ensure the safety and enjoyment of the experience, try to acquire staff with these abilities or this training.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Appropriate staffing, funding, integrity vital to effective program evaluation
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
Many details must be considered when developing such a plan. Foremost are the elements of staffing, funding, and timing, as well as considerations for integrity and ethics. Overall, these are managed through a set of guidelines for establishing an evaluation system (see the checklist below).
- Link evaluation projects. Specific efforts to evaluate specific programs should be connected in an interwoven system that focuses on a joint and coordinated effort. This requires open communication among programmers and a transparent vision for organization-wide evaluation. For example, information collected in a summative evaluation for one program might be helpful when planning an evaluation project for another program. Or questionnaires prepared for one program's evaluation might also be used to evaluate another program. Individual program evaluations should answer questions about program service success for the entire organization. Overall, are you achieving your mission?
- Gain administrative support. Your supervisors should be involved in planning specific evaluation projects as well as the entire evaluation system. Also, an advisory committee may be useful in helping with individual evaluation projects and overseeing the overall evaluation system for the organization. Communication with administrators or an advisory group can help you develop insights and gain commitment to the study. For example, organization directors may be crucial for getting the cooperation of other program staff for an evaluation effort. Involving them will also mean a greater likelihood that the results from the evaluation will be used to improve programs and upgrade program policies.
- Designate staff. Your organization should designate a person who is ultimately responsible for program evaluation. This is essential for any coordinated and systematic evaluation effort. Sometimes the programmers themselves may fill this role, or when more sensitivity is needed, outside consultants or research specialists may be called in. As well, sometimes a staff member is appointed to oversee the organization's entire evaluation system, or an individual is designated for a specific program evaluation project.
Ideally, persons responsible for evaluation should be well versed in both qualitative and quantitative inquiry methods, should be able to analyze and interpret data, and should have excellent written and verbal communication skills (Russell, 2005). They should also be able to work objectively, not trying to prove a particular finding or distort or promote a specific conclusion. As well, they should be thorough, meticulous, and able to design and carry out evaluation studies using precise methods in order for the results to have any real value to the organization.
- Involve program participants. There are many reasons for involving program participants in evaluation. Involving them early and often can help them gain understanding of what the evaluation is all about, ultimately increasing their support for the study and the program. Program participants can learn why the evaluation is being conducted and how it will proceed. This may help them feel less threatened. It will also help them understand what the program is trying to accomplish. Best of all, including participants in program evaluation can vastly improve the evaluator's understanding of the worth of the program.
- Define roles and clarify authority structures. At the outset, those involved in an evaluation project-administrators, staff, and participants-should be very clear with each other about what is expected from them. The scope and limits of their roles need to be declared, ideally in written form. This not only helps ensure completeness-the elimination of gaps in the evaluation study-but also helps solve disagreements if they arise.
- Provide adequate funding. Costs of evaluation should be included in organizational operations budgets. Depending on their scope and method, evaluations can potentially be expensive. Personnel costs, in particular, must be considered in an evaluation budget because they are often the major expense category. Also, some supplies can be purchased inexpensively or are free, but others will require specifically earmarked funds. For example, some equipment, such as computers, may already be available, but specialized software, such as statistical and graphing programs, may need to be purchased. To augment organization-provided general operations budgets, grants can be a source of evaluation funding. In fact, most grants that fund programs require an evaluation component in the grant proposal. Regional foundations and state, provincial, and federal government agencies will sometimes fund entire evaluation studies. Evaluation expenses that should be included in an organization's budget or grant proposal include the following:
• Sample selection costs
• Travel expenses for interviewer(s)
• Materials costs for pretesting the evaluation procedures
• Supervisory costs for hiring an outside consultant and overseeing his or her work
• Staff training costs
• Labor and material costs for data entry
• Analyst costs for preparing tabulations and special data analyses
• Labor and materials costs for report preparation
• Telephone charges, postage, reproduction, and printing costs
- Ensure adequate time. Evaluation takes time. Some projects require several months to complete at a certain time of year, while others may take only a day and can be done during any season. For example, if you are interested in assessing downhill skiers' satisfaction with instructional programs at the ski resort, then administering a questionnaire to participants may take only a couple of days, but it will need to be done during the winter.
As well, since evaluators and decision makers have different time schedule demands, you should establish an agreed-upon time frame for the completion of an evaluation project (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Estimate how much time is needed for recruitment of study participants, data collection, data analysis, preparation of the final report, and so on. Planning for evaluation therefore requires development of a timetable, or time budget (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Both calendar and clock time need to be budgeted. A mistake many evaluators make is underestimating the time needed, resulting in late delivery of the report or missing the deadline altogether. We recommend that the time budget include a 20 percent "extra time" factor to compensate for this. - Provide useful feedback. Programmers are most appreciated by supervisors, advisory and policy groups, participants, and other program staff when the information gathered in the evaluation is perceived to be valuable. For example, suppose you wish to determine guest satisfaction with state park cabins. Measuring overall satisfaction is important, but even more useful information is possible by measuring specific satisfaction with such details as cabin design, cleanliness, linen service, the registration system, and proximity to park activities. These more targeted results increase the evaluation's value to a wider array of staff.
- Prepare an evaluation project proposal. An evaluation plan benefits from documented decisions about the purpose of a project and how it will be carried out. A formal proposal-a written description of the intentions of the evaluation-is useful for communicating your plans to others in the organization. In addition, the process of writing a proposal helps you think through the research steps you'll follow, helping you be more efficient in carrying out the study. It is much easier to find flaws in the evaluation project and correct them before beginning to collect information than it is to discover and correct problems after you have started.
- Keep evaluation projects going. Successful evaluation projects start out well organized and stay on track through the finish. Usually the person who develops the project proposal is the one who has the responsibility of seeing it through to completion. This might mean taking care of such logistics as recruiting respondents to questionnaires, printing and distributing questionnaires, monitoring the evaluation budget, and seeing that the final report is timely.
- Conduct evaluations ethically and with integrity. Integrity and ethics are essential for conducting a valid evaluation. Integrity refers to the validity of the information that is collected to determine the value of a program. Ethics is concerned with the treatment of the participants in the evaluation process.
First, how can you maintain evaluation integrity? Those who use the evaluation results want the information to be accurate; they apply what Weiss and Bucuvalas (1980) call truth tests in deciding how seriously to pay attention to an evaluation outcome-or its validity. Typically, a program evaluation is valid if it is "true, credible, and right" (House, 1980, p. 250). This means the nature of the evaluation process, the study design, the data gathering, and the way results are reported are honest. Both the evaluation (action) and the evaluator (person) must be perceived as trustworthy for the evaluation to have high validity (Russell, 2005). Only an honestly conducted evaluation can provide useful information and help an organization achieve its goals. The box on this page provides two illustrations of the negative effect an evaluation that lacks integrity can have.
Second, what are sound ethical practices in evaluation? Conducting ethical evaluations requires doing everything possible to treat the people, programs, and organizations studied graciously and honorably, including providing an environment that is safe and free of discrimination. One way to accomplish this is through informed consent-communication that ensures a potential evaluation respondent has sufficient information to decide whether to participate in the study. Typically, the respondent reads and signs a statement agreeing to participate in the study. The statement should describe the essential details of the study, including an explanation of the procedures, the potential benefits and risks of participation, the participant's rights to confidentiality, and the choice to participate. When children are involved in an evaluation, parents or guardians should sign an informed consent. Government-sponsored evaluations, as well as most professional associations, require informed consent.
Another factor that helps ensure an ethical evaluation is an approving authority. An approving authority, such as a special committee within or outside the organization, can review evaluation project proposals for fair treatment of the people and programs studied as well as for honorably collected information. For example, universities all have institutional review committees that must give approval for studies that use human subjects. Elementary and secondary school systems have committees to review studies that outside groups, such as park and recreation agencies, want to conduct within the schools. Similarly, hospitals have review committees that must give approval for studies done with patients.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Distinctiveness, memorability a must when naming rec programs
Naming a program focuses on developing “the hook”—something that gains attention. Your task is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest.
You may be tempted to think selecting a title or label for a program is easy and of no real significance. Yet stop and think about your own behavior when you glance through a recreation program brochure, skim an advertisement, or scan a Web site. Most people allocate only a few seconds when looking for program information. They are searching for things of interest to them. If a title catches their attention, they'll read more thoroughly (McCarville, 2002). So, your task in naming programs is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest and attention (see the box on this page for an example).
Names represent dominant cues to customers. Thus, a program's name may be one of the most important pieces of information you can offer to prospective patrons. Names represent "the hook that hangs the brand on the product" (Ries & Trout, 1986, p. 71). Consider the name Exercise Center. What happens to your interest when the name is changed to Weight and Stress Control Center? The program is no longer about exerting physical energy; it is about getting body weight and stress under control. Now the "brand" is wellness rather than effort.
Another example is the leisure service agency that renamed an adult swim program for novices. The new title? Swimming for the Absolutely Terrified. The new choice was not only more descriptive but also more memorable. As a result, the program increased in popularity, and the agency has expanded the "absolutely terrified" naming theme to include programs on learning to ski, using computers and the Internet, and high school diploma exam preparation (McCarville, 2002).
From a communication perspective, naming a program focuses on developing "the hook"-something that gains attention. The most successful hooks focus on benefits (McCarville, 2002). The logic is simple: Programs that are named according to what the patrons want will attract more patron attention. Useful program names tell what the service will do and make it easy for patrons to visualize the benefits (Burton & Purvis, 1996).
Here is some specific advice on naming programs. Essentially, in order to be effective communication tools, names should pass four basic tests (Berry & Parasuraman, 1991). The first test is distinctiveness. The program name must clearly distinguish itself from other programs. The term aerobics class, for example, is descriptive but doesn't distinguish one fitness program from another. Instead, why not name this program Latin Explosion, Cardio Studio, or Fitness Jumpstart (Division of Recreational Sports, 2004)?
The second naming test is relevance. The program name needs to provide an image that is meaningful to the target constituency. The name must also be an honest representation of the program itself. For example, the titles Lifeguard Instructor Training and Water Safety Instructor Training provide a meaningful message about the differences in the two programs (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006). Memorability is the third test. Memorability refers to how easily the name is understood and remembered. This requires that the name be creatively interesting and to the point. Clutter and dullness are not memorable. For example, Owl Prowl, Classy Casting, and Rip Roaring Rapids are easy to remember because of the rhyming and alliteration (Bloomington Parks & Recreation, 2004).
For the fourth test, the name must be flexible enough to allow easy changes in program content or format over time. For instance, a program titled Yoga or Pilates Sampler enables programmers to alternate which fitness activity is offered from season to season without having to change the program's name (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006).
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Motivation strategies keep recreation program participants coming back
A good staff member should be able to keep program participants energized and motivated.
Another important function of staff is energizing participants, providing direction, and helping sustain recreational behavior (Russell, 2005). This is referred to as motivation. Motivation encompasses efforts to initiate, sustain, and stop behavior.
Because motivation is something within a person, we cannot describe the motivation of others directly. But research allows us to understand some principles of motivation. For example, positive reinforcement of a behavior increases the likelihood that the same behavior will be repeated, whereas negative reinforcement makes it more likely the same behavior will not be repeated.
There are two types of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic motivation means the behavior itself is positively reinforcing. Intrinsic motivation is doing something simply because it is interesting and personally meaningful. Ideally, all recreation participation is intrinsically motivated. Indeed, as Iso-Ahola (1982) explains, the participant initially chooses a recreation activity with the expectation that the activity will provide a feeling of freedom of choice and competence. On the other hand, extrinsic motivation comes from outside the behavior. The positive reinforcement is artificially established-a prize can be won, recognition can be awarded, weight can be lost, others can be impressed. Recreation program staff are able to manage participant motivation through both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.
Increasing intrinsic motivation revolves around strategies to increase participants' perceptions of success. Here are some suggestions (Weinberg & Gould, 1995; Bateman & Snell, 2002; Russell, 2005):
- Match skill levels of participants with the challenges required in the activity (e.g., use higher-classified white-water rivers for experienced boaters); see the box on page 163.
- Use verbal and nonverbal praise; this is especially important for participants who receive little recognition otherwise.
- Involve participants in decision making; people perceive they have greater competency when they make their own decisions, which in turn increases intrinsic motivation.
- Share the power with participants; confidence in one's worth is profoundly motivating.
- Be sure participants are ready to participate in the program (i.e., they have the knowledge and skills to enjoy a particular activity).
- Enhance the appropriateness of physical properties of the program setting (e.g., lower the lighting, turn up the music volume, and watch them dance!).
- Develop programs that include a planned progression. Some common examples are merit badges in scouting; A and B teams in sports; first, second, and third seats in an orchestra; and white, brown, and black belts in karate.
Using extrinsic motivation to guide recreation program interest and behavior is also common, especially when intrinsic motivation is not present. Here is a sampling of suggestions (Russell, 2005) for extrinsically motivating participation in recreation programs:
- Emphasize the status of the activity. Provide membership cards, mugs, uniforms, patches, T-shirts, well-maintained equipment, and other status symbols.
- Carefully employ well-planned and well-controlled competition. Although it runs the risk of going too far and becoming demotivating, competition can be used as an interest builder (see "How to Keep Competition's Motivational Potential" on this page).
- Capitalize on people's desire to be part of a group. Peer pressure is a motivator in much the same way as announcing, "Only a few tickets left."
- Offer prizes and rewards directly associated with the activity; blue ribbons, door prizes, gold stars, free gifts, coupons, and certificates are the most common.
In preparing to implement a recreation program, consider the role of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation techniques. If they would help ensure the safety and enjoyment of the experience, try to acquire staff with these abilities or this training.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Appropriate staffing, funding, integrity vital to effective program evaluation
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
Many details must be considered when developing such a plan. Foremost are the elements of staffing, funding, and timing, as well as considerations for integrity and ethics. Overall, these are managed through a set of guidelines for establishing an evaluation system (see the checklist below).
- Link evaluation projects. Specific efforts to evaluate specific programs should be connected in an interwoven system that focuses on a joint and coordinated effort. This requires open communication among programmers and a transparent vision for organization-wide evaluation. For example, information collected in a summative evaluation for one program might be helpful when planning an evaluation project for another program. Or questionnaires prepared for one program's evaluation might also be used to evaluate another program. Individual program evaluations should answer questions about program service success for the entire organization. Overall, are you achieving your mission?
- Gain administrative support. Your supervisors should be involved in planning specific evaluation projects as well as the entire evaluation system. Also, an advisory committee may be useful in helping with individual evaluation projects and overseeing the overall evaluation system for the organization. Communication with administrators or an advisory group can help you develop insights and gain commitment to the study. For example, organization directors may be crucial for getting the cooperation of other program staff for an evaluation effort. Involving them will also mean a greater likelihood that the results from the evaluation will be used to improve programs and upgrade program policies.
- Designate staff. Your organization should designate a person who is ultimately responsible for program evaluation. This is essential for any coordinated and systematic evaluation effort. Sometimes the programmers themselves may fill this role, or when more sensitivity is needed, outside consultants or research specialists may be called in. As well, sometimes a staff member is appointed to oversee the organization's entire evaluation system, or an individual is designated for a specific program evaluation project.
Ideally, persons responsible for evaluation should be well versed in both qualitative and quantitative inquiry methods, should be able to analyze and interpret data, and should have excellent written and verbal communication skills (Russell, 2005). They should also be able to work objectively, not trying to prove a particular finding or distort or promote a specific conclusion. As well, they should be thorough, meticulous, and able to design and carry out evaluation studies using precise methods in order for the results to have any real value to the organization.
- Involve program participants. There are many reasons for involving program participants in evaluation. Involving them early and often can help them gain understanding of what the evaluation is all about, ultimately increasing their support for the study and the program. Program participants can learn why the evaluation is being conducted and how it will proceed. This may help them feel less threatened. It will also help them understand what the program is trying to accomplish. Best of all, including participants in program evaluation can vastly improve the evaluator's understanding of the worth of the program.
- Define roles and clarify authority structures. At the outset, those involved in an evaluation project-administrators, staff, and participants-should be very clear with each other about what is expected from them. The scope and limits of their roles need to be declared, ideally in written form. This not only helps ensure completeness-the elimination of gaps in the evaluation study-but also helps solve disagreements if they arise.
- Provide adequate funding. Costs of evaluation should be included in organizational operations budgets. Depending on their scope and method, evaluations can potentially be expensive. Personnel costs, in particular, must be considered in an evaluation budget because they are often the major expense category. Also, some supplies can be purchased inexpensively or are free, but others will require specifically earmarked funds. For example, some equipment, such as computers, may already be available, but specialized software, such as statistical and graphing programs, may need to be purchased. To augment organization-provided general operations budgets, grants can be a source of evaluation funding. In fact, most grants that fund programs require an evaluation component in the grant proposal. Regional foundations and state, provincial, and federal government agencies will sometimes fund entire evaluation studies. Evaluation expenses that should be included in an organization's budget or grant proposal include the following:
• Sample selection costs
• Travel expenses for interviewer(s)
• Materials costs for pretesting the evaluation procedures
• Supervisory costs for hiring an outside consultant and overseeing his or her work
• Staff training costs
• Labor and material costs for data entry
• Analyst costs for preparing tabulations and special data analyses
• Labor and materials costs for report preparation
• Telephone charges, postage, reproduction, and printing costs
- Ensure adequate time. Evaluation takes time. Some projects require several months to complete at a certain time of year, while others may take only a day and can be done during any season. For example, if you are interested in assessing downhill skiers' satisfaction with instructional programs at the ski resort, then administering a questionnaire to participants may take only a couple of days, but it will need to be done during the winter.
As well, since evaluators and decision makers have different time schedule demands, you should establish an agreed-upon time frame for the completion of an evaluation project (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Estimate how much time is needed for recruitment of study participants, data collection, data analysis, preparation of the final report, and so on. Planning for evaluation therefore requires development of a timetable, or time budget (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Both calendar and clock time need to be budgeted. A mistake many evaluators make is underestimating the time needed, resulting in late delivery of the report or missing the deadline altogether. We recommend that the time budget include a 20 percent "extra time" factor to compensate for this. - Provide useful feedback. Programmers are most appreciated by supervisors, advisory and policy groups, participants, and other program staff when the information gathered in the evaluation is perceived to be valuable. For example, suppose you wish to determine guest satisfaction with state park cabins. Measuring overall satisfaction is important, but even more useful information is possible by measuring specific satisfaction with such details as cabin design, cleanliness, linen service, the registration system, and proximity to park activities. These more targeted results increase the evaluation's value to a wider array of staff.
- Prepare an evaluation project proposal. An evaluation plan benefits from documented decisions about the purpose of a project and how it will be carried out. A formal proposal-a written description of the intentions of the evaluation-is useful for communicating your plans to others in the organization. In addition, the process of writing a proposal helps you think through the research steps you'll follow, helping you be more efficient in carrying out the study. It is much easier to find flaws in the evaluation project and correct them before beginning to collect information than it is to discover and correct problems after you have started.
- Keep evaluation projects going. Successful evaluation projects start out well organized and stay on track through the finish. Usually the person who develops the project proposal is the one who has the responsibility of seeing it through to completion. This might mean taking care of such logistics as recruiting respondents to questionnaires, printing and distributing questionnaires, monitoring the evaluation budget, and seeing that the final report is timely.
- Conduct evaluations ethically and with integrity. Integrity and ethics are essential for conducting a valid evaluation. Integrity refers to the validity of the information that is collected to determine the value of a program. Ethics is concerned with the treatment of the participants in the evaluation process.
First, how can you maintain evaluation integrity? Those who use the evaluation results want the information to be accurate; they apply what Weiss and Bucuvalas (1980) call truth tests in deciding how seriously to pay attention to an evaluation outcome-or its validity. Typically, a program evaluation is valid if it is "true, credible, and right" (House, 1980, p. 250). This means the nature of the evaluation process, the study design, the data gathering, and the way results are reported are honest. Both the evaluation (action) and the evaluator (person) must be perceived as trustworthy for the evaluation to have high validity (Russell, 2005). Only an honestly conducted evaluation can provide useful information and help an organization achieve its goals. The box on this page provides two illustrations of the negative effect an evaluation that lacks integrity can have.
Second, what are sound ethical practices in evaluation? Conducting ethical evaluations requires doing everything possible to treat the people, programs, and organizations studied graciously and honorably, including providing an environment that is safe and free of discrimination. One way to accomplish this is through informed consent-communication that ensures a potential evaluation respondent has sufficient information to decide whether to participate in the study. Typically, the respondent reads and signs a statement agreeing to participate in the study. The statement should describe the essential details of the study, including an explanation of the procedures, the potential benefits and risks of participation, the participant's rights to confidentiality, and the choice to participate. When children are involved in an evaluation, parents or guardians should sign an informed consent. Government-sponsored evaluations, as well as most professional associations, require informed consent.
Another factor that helps ensure an ethical evaluation is an approving authority. An approving authority, such as a special committee within or outside the organization, can review evaluation project proposals for fair treatment of the people and programs studied as well as for honorably collected information. For example, universities all have institutional review committees that must give approval for studies that use human subjects. Elementary and secondary school systems have committees to review studies that outside groups, such as park and recreation agencies, want to conduct within the schools. Similarly, hospitals have review committees that must give approval for studies done with patients.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Distinctiveness, memorability a must when naming rec programs
Naming a program focuses on developing “the hook”—something that gains attention. Your task is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest.
You may be tempted to think selecting a title or label for a program is easy and of no real significance. Yet stop and think about your own behavior when you glance through a recreation program brochure, skim an advertisement, or scan a Web site. Most people allocate only a few seconds when looking for program information. They are searching for things of interest to them. If a title catches their attention, they'll read more thoroughly (McCarville, 2002). So, your task in naming programs is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest and attention (see the box on this page for an example).
Names represent dominant cues to customers. Thus, a program's name may be one of the most important pieces of information you can offer to prospective patrons. Names represent "the hook that hangs the brand on the product" (Ries & Trout, 1986, p. 71). Consider the name Exercise Center. What happens to your interest when the name is changed to Weight and Stress Control Center? The program is no longer about exerting physical energy; it is about getting body weight and stress under control. Now the "brand" is wellness rather than effort.
Another example is the leisure service agency that renamed an adult swim program for novices. The new title? Swimming for the Absolutely Terrified. The new choice was not only more descriptive but also more memorable. As a result, the program increased in popularity, and the agency has expanded the "absolutely terrified" naming theme to include programs on learning to ski, using computers and the Internet, and high school diploma exam preparation (McCarville, 2002).
From a communication perspective, naming a program focuses on developing "the hook"-something that gains attention. The most successful hooks focus on benefits (McCarville, 2002). The logic is simple: Programs that are named according to what the patrons want will attract more patron attention. Useful program names tell what the service will do and make it easy for patrons to visualize the benefits (Burton & Purvis, 1996).
Here is some specific advice on naming programs. Essentially, in order to be effective communication tools, names should pass four basic tests (Berry & Parasuraman, 1991). The first test is distinctiveness. The program name must clearly distinguish itself from other programs. The term aerobics class, for example, is descriptive but doesn't distinguish one fitness program from another. Instead, why not name this program Latin Explosion, Cardio Studio, or Fitness Jumpstart (Division of Recreational Sports, 2004)?
The second naming test is relevance. The program name needs to provide an image that is meaningful to the target constituency. The name must also be an honest representation of the program itself. For example, the titles Lifeguard Instructor Training and Water Safety Instructor Training provide a meaningful message about the differences in the two programs (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006). Memorability is the third test. Memorability refers to how easily the name is understood and remembered. This requires that the name be creatively interesting and to the point. Clutter and dullness are not memorable. For example, Owl Prowl, Classy Casting, and Rip Roaring Rapids are easy to remember because of the rhyming and alliteration (Bloomington Parks & Recreation, 2004).
For the fourth test, the name must be flexible enough to allow easy changes in program content or format over time. For instance, a program titled Yoga or Pilates Sampler enables programmers to alternate which fitness activity is offered from season to season without having to change the program's name (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006).
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Motivation strategies keep recreation program participants coming back
A good staff member should be able to keep program participants energized and motivated.
Another important function of staff is energizing participants, providing direction, and helping sustain recreational behavior (Russell, 2005). This is referred to as motivation. Motivation encompasses efforts to initiate, sustain, and stop behavior.
Because motivation is something within a person, we cannot describe the motivation of others directly. But research allows us to understand some principles of motivation. For example, positive reinforcement of a behavior increases the likelihood that the same behavior will be repeated, whereas negative reinforcement makes it more likely the same behavior will not be repeated.
There are two types of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic motivation means the behavior itself is positively reinforcing. Intrinsic motivation is doing something simply because it is interesting and personally meaningful. Ideally, all recreation participation is intrinsically motivated. Indeed, as Iso-Ahola (1982) explains, the participant initially chooses a recreation activity with the expectation that the activity will provide a feeling of freedom of choice and competence. On the other hand, extrinsic motivation comes from outside the behavior. The positive reinforcement is artificially established-a prize can be won, recognition can be awarded, weight can be lost, others can be impressed. Recreation program staff are able to manage participant motivation through both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.
Increasing intrinsic motivation revolves around strategies to increase participants' perceptions of success. Here are some suggestions (Weinberg & Gould, 1995; Bateman & Snell, 2002; Russell, 2005):
- Match skill levels of participants with the challenges required in the activity (e.g., use higher-classified white-water rivers for experienced boaters); see the box on page 163.
- Use verbal and nonverbal praise; this is especially important for participants who receive little recognition otherwise.
- Involve participants in decision making; people perceive they have greater competency when they make their own decisions, which in turn increases intrinsic motivation.
- Share the power with participants; confidence in one's worth is profoundly motivating.
- Be sure participants are ready to participate in the program (i.e., they have the knowledge and skills to enjoy a particular activity).
- Enhance the appropriateness of physical properties of the program setting (e.g., lower the lighting, turn up the music volume, and watch them dance!).
- Develop programs that include a planned progression. Some common examples are merit badges in scouting; A and B teams in sports; first, second, and third seats in an orchestra; and white, brown, and black belts in karate.
Using extrinsic motivation to guide recreation program interest and behavior is also common, especially when intrinsic motivation is not present. Here is a sampling of suggestions (Russell, 2005) for extrinsically motivating participation in recreation programs:
- Emphasize the status of the activity. Provide membership cards, mugs, uniforms, patches, T-shirts, well-maintained equipment, and other status symbols.
- Carefully employ well-planned and well-controlled competition. Although it runs the risk of going too far and becoming demotivating, competition can be used as an interest builder (see "How to Keep Competition's Motivational Potential" on this page).
- Capitalize on people's desire to be part of a group. Peer pressure is a motivator in much the same way as announcing, "Only a few tickets left."
- Offer prizes and rewards directly associated with the activity; blue ribbons, door prizes, gold stars, free gifts, coupons, and certificates are the most common.
In preparing to implement a recreation program, consider the role of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation techniques. If they would help ensure the safety and enjoyment of the experience, try to acquire staff with these abilities or this training.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Appropriate staffing, funding, integrity vital to effective program evaluation
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
Many details must be considered when developing such a plan. Foremost are the elements of staffing, funding, and timing, as well as considerations for integrity and ethics. Overall, these are managed through a set of guidelines for establishing an evaluation system (see the checklist below).
- Link evaluation projects. Specific efforts to evaluate specific programs should be connected in an interwoven system that focuses on a joint and coordinated effort. This requires open communication among programmers and a transparent vision for organization-wide evaluation. For example, information collected in a summative evaluation for one program might be helpful when planning an evaluation project for another program. Or questionnaires prepared for one program's evaluation might also be used to evaluate another program. Individual program evaluations should answer questions about program service success for the entire organization. Overall, are you achieving your mission?
- Gain administrative support. Your supervisors should be involved in planning specific evaluation projects as well as the entire evaluation system. Also, an advisory committee may be useful in helping with individual evaluation projects and overseeing the overall evaluation system for the organization. Communication with administrators or an advisory group can help you develop insights and gain commitment to the study. For example, organization directors may be crucial for getting the cooperation of other program staff for an evaluation effort. Involving them will also mean a greater likelihood that the results from the evaluation will be used to improve programs and upgrade program policies.
- Designate staff. Your organization should designate a person who is ultimately responsible for program evaluation. This is essential for any coordinated and systematic evaluation effort. Sometimes the programmers themselves may fill this role, or when more sensitivity is needed, outside consultants or research specialists may be called in. As well, sometimes a staff member is appointed to oversee the organization's entire evaluation system, or an individual is designated for a specific program evaluation project.
Ideally, persons responsible for evaluation should be well versed in both qualitative and quantitative inquiry methods, should be able to analyze and interpret data, and should have excellent written and verbal communication skills (Russell, 2005). They should also be able to work objectively, not trying to prove a particular finding or distort or promote a specific conclusion. As well, they should be thorough, meticulous, and able to design and carry out evaluation studies using precise methods in order for the results to have any real value to the organization.
- Involve program participants. There are many reasons for involving program participants in evaluation. Involving them early and often can help them gain understanding of what the evaluation is all about, ultimately increasing their support for the study and the program. Program participants can learn why the evaluation is being conducted and how it will proceed. This may help them feel less threatened. It will also help them understand what the program is trying to accomplish. Best of all, including participants in program evaluation can vastly improve the evaluator's understanding of the worth of the program.
- Define roles and clarify authority structures. At the outset, those involved in an evaluation project-administrators, staff, and participants-should be very clear with each other about what is expected from them. The scope and limits of their roles need to be declared, ideally in written form. This not only helps ensure completeness-the elimination of gaps in the evaluation study-but also helps solve disagreements if they arise.
- Provide adequate funding. Costs of evaluation should be included in organizational operations budgets. Depending on their scope and method, evaluations can potentially be expensive. Personnel costs, in particular, must be considered in an evaluation budget because they are often the major expense category. Also, some supplies can be purchased inexpensively or are free, but others will require specifically earmarked funds. For example, some equipment, such as computers, may already be available, but specialized software, such as statistical and graphing programs, may need to be purchased. To augment organization-provided general operations budgets, grants can be a source of evaluation funding. In fact, most grants that fund programs require an evaluation component in the grant proposal. Regional foundations and state, provincial, and federal government agencies will sometimes fund entire evaluation studies. Evaluation expenses that should be included in an organization's budget or grant proposal include the following:
• Sample selection costs
• Travel expenses for interviewer(s)
• Materials costs for pretesting the evaluation procedures
• Supervisory costs for hiring an outside consultant and overseeing his or her work
• Staff training costs
• Labor and material costs for data entry
• Analyst costs for preparing tabulations and special data analyses
• Labor and materials costs for report preparation
• Telephone charges, postage, reproduction, and printing costs
- Ensure adequate time. Evaluation takes time. Some projects require several months to complete at a certain time of year, while others may take only a day and can be done during any season. For example, if you are interested in assessing downhill skiers' satisfaction with instructional programs at the ski resort, then administering a questionnaire to participants may take only a couple of days, but it will need to be done during the winter.
As well, since evaluators and decision makers have different time schedule demands, you should establish an agreed-upon time frame for the completion of an evaluation project (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Estimate how much time is needed for recruitment of study participants, data collection, data analysis, preparation of the final report, and so on. Planning for evaluation therefore requires development of a timetable, or time budget (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Both calendar and clock time need to be budgeted. A mistake many evaluators make is underestimating the time needed, resulting in late delivery of the report or missing the deadline altogether. We recommend that the time budget include a 20 percent "extra time" factor to compensate for this. - Provide useful feedback. Programmers are most appreciated by supervisors, advisory and policy groups, participants, and other program staff when the information gathered in the evaluation is perceived to be valuable. For example, suppose you wish to determine guest satisfaction with state park cabins. Measuring overall satisfaction is important, but even more useful information is possible by measuring specific satisfaction with such details as cabin design, cleanliness, linen service, the registration system, and proximity to park activities. These more targeted results increase the evaluation's value to a wider array of staff.
- Prepare an evaluation project proposal. An evaluation plan benefits from documented decisions about the purpose of a project and how it will be carried out. A formal proposal-a written description of the intentions of the evaluation-is useful for communicating your plans to others in the organization. In addition, the process of writing a proposal helps you think through the research steps you'll follow, helping you be more efficient in carrying out the study. It is much easier to find flaws in the evaluation project and correct them before beginning to collect information than it is to discover and correct problems after you have started.
- Keep evaluation projects going. Successful evaluation projects start out well organized and stay on track through the finish. Usually the person who develops the project proposal is the one who has the responsibility of seeing it through to completion. This might mean taking care of such logistics as recruiting respondents to questionnaires, printing and distributing questionnaires, monitoring the evaluation budget, and seeing that the final report is timely.
- Conduct evaluations ethically and with integrity. Integrity and ethics are essential for conducting a valid evaluation. Integrity refers to the validity of the information that is collected to determine the value of a program. Ethics is concerned with the treatment of the participants in the evaluation process.
First, how can you maintain evaluation integrity? Those who use the evaluation results want the information to be accurate; they apply what Weiss and Bucuvalas (1980) call truth tests in deciding how seriously to pay attention to an evaluation outcome-or its validity. Typically, a program evaluation is valid if it is "true, credible, and right" (House, 1980, p. 250). This means the nature of the evaluation process, the study design, the data gathering, and the way results are reported are honest. Both the evaluation (action) and the evaluator (person) must be perceived as trustworthy for the evaluation to have high validity (Russell, 2005). Only an honestly conducted evaluation can provide useful information and help an organization achieve its goals. The box on this page provides two illustrations of the negative effect an evaluation that lacks integrity can have.
Second, what are sound ethical practices in evaluation? Conducting ethical evaluations requires doing everything possible to treat the people, programs, and organizations studied graciously and honorably, including providing an environment that is safe and free of discrimination. One way to accomplish this is through informed consent-communication that ensures a potential evaluation respondent has sufficient information to decide whether to participate in the study. Typically, the respondent reads and signs a statement agreeing to participate in the study. The statement should describe the essential details of the study, including an explanation of the procedures, the potential benefits and risks of participation, the participant's rights to confidentiality, and the choice to participate. When children are involved in an evaluation, parents or guardians should sign an informed consent. Government-sponsored evaluations, as well as most professional associations, require informed consent.
Another factor that helps ensure an ethical evaluation is an approving authority. An approving authority, such as a special committee within or outside the organization, can review evaluation project proposals for fair treatment of the people and programs studied as well as for honorably collected information. For example, universities all have institutional review committees that must give approval for studies that use human subjects. Elementary and secondary school systems have committees to review studies that outside groups, such as park and recreation agencies, want to conduct within the schools. Similarly, hospitals have review committees that must give approval for studies done with patients.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Distinctiveness, memorability a must when naming rec programs
Naming a program focuses on developing “the hook”—something that gains attention. Your task is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest.
You may be tempted to think selecting a title or label for a program is easy and of no real significance. Yet stop and think about your own behavior when you glance through a recreation program brochure, skim an advertisement, or scan a Web site. Most people allocate only a few seconds when looking for program information. They are searching for things of interest to them. If a title catches their attention, they'll read more thoroughly (McCarville, 2002). So, your task in naming programs is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest and attention (see the box on this page for an example).
Names represent dominant cues to customers. Thus, a program's name may be one of the most important pieces of information you can offer to prospective patrons. Names represent "the hook that hangs the brand on the product" (Ries & Trout, 1986, p. 71). Consider the name Exercise Center. What happens to your interest when the name is changed to Weight and Stress Control Center? The program is no longer about exerting physical energy; it is about getting body weight and stress under control. Now the "brand" is wellness rather than effort.
Another example is the leisure service agency that renamed an adult swim program for novices. The new title? Swimming for the Absolutely Terrified. The new choice was not only more descriptive but also more memorable. As a result, the program increased in popularity, and the agency has expanded the "absolutely terrified" naming theme to include programs on learning to ski, using computers and the Internet, and high school diploma exam preparation (McCarville, 2002).
From a communication perspective, naming a program focuses on developing "the hook"-something that gains attention. The most successful hooks focus on benefits (McCarville, 2002). The logic is simple: Programs that are named according to what the patrons want will attract more patron attention. Useful program names tell what the service will do and make it easy for patrons to visualize the benefits (Burton & Purvis, 1996).
Here is some specific advice on naming programs. Essentially, in order to be effective communication tools, names should pass four basic tests (Berry & Parasuraman, 1991). The first test is distinctiveness. The program name must clearly distinguish itself from other programs. The term aerobics class, for example, is descriptive but doesn't distinguish one fitness program from another. Instead, why not name this program Latin Explosion, Cardio Studio, or Fitness Jumpstart (Division of Recreational Sports, 2004)?
The second naming test is relevance. The program name needs to provide an image that is meaningful to the target constituency. The name must also be an honest representation of the program itself. For example, the titles Lifeguard Instructor Training and Water Safety Instructor Training provide a meaningful message about the differences in the two programs (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006). Memorability is the third test. Memorability refers to how easily the name is understood and remembered. This requires that the name be creatively interesting and to the point. Clutter and dullness are not memorable. For example, Owl Prowl, Classy Casting, and Rip Roaring Rapids are easy to remember because of the rhyming and alliteration (Bloomington Parks & Recreation, 2004).
For the fourth test, the name must be flexible enough to allow easy changes in program content or format over time. For instance, a program titled Yoga or Pilates Sampler enables programmers to alternate which fitness activity is offered from season to season without having to change the program's name (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006).
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Motivation strategies keep recreation program participants coming back
A good staff member should be able to keep program participants energized and motivated.
Another important function of staff is energizing participants, providing direction, and helping sustain recreational behavior (Russell, 2005). This is referred to as motivation. Motivation encompasses efforts to initiate, sustain, and stop behavior.
Because motivation is something within a person, we cannot describe the motivation of others directly. But research allows us to understand some principles of motivation. For example, positive reinforcement of a behavior increases the likelihood that the same behavior will be repeated, whereas negative reinforcement makes it more likely the same behavior will not be repeated.
There are two types of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic motivation means the behavior itself is positively reinforcing. Intrinsic motivation is doing something simply because it is interesting and personally meaningful. Ideally, all recreation participation is intrinsically motivated. Indeed, as Iso-Ahola (1982) explains, the participant initially chooses a recreation activity with the expectation that the activity will provide a feeling of freedom of choice and competence. On the other hand, extrinsic motivation comes from outside the behavior. The positive reinforcement is artificially established-a prize can be won, recognition can be awarded, weight can be lost, others can be impressed. Recreation program staff are able to manage participant motivation through both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.
Increasing intrinsic motivation revolves around strategies to increase participants' perceptions of success. Here are some suggestions (Weinberg & Gould, 1995; Bateman & Snell, 2002; Russell, 2005):
- Match skill levels of participants with the challenges required in the activity (e.g., use higher-classified white-water rivers for experienced boaters); see the box on page 163.
- Use verbal and nonverbal praise; this is especially important for participants who receive little recognition otherwise.
- Involve participants in decision making; people perceive they have greater competency when they make their own decisions, which in turn increases intrinsic motivation.
- Share the power with participants; confidence in one's worth is profoundly motivating.
- Be sure participants are ready to participate in the program (i.e., they have the knowledge and skills to enjoy a particular activity).
- Enhance the appropriateness of physical properties of the program setting (e.g., lower the lighting, turn up the music volume, and watch them dance!).
- Develop programs that include a planned progression. Some common examples are merit badges in scouting; A and B teams in sports; first, second, and third seats in an orchestra; and white, brown, and black belts in karate.
Using extrinsic motivation to guide recreation program interest and behavior is also common, especially when intrinsic motivation is not present. Here is a sampling of suggestions (Russell, 2005) for extrinsically motivating participation in recreation programs:
- Emphasize the status of the activity. Provide membership cards, mugs, uniforms, patches, T-shirts, well-maintained equipment, and other status symbols.
- Carefully employ well-planned and well-controlled competition. Although it runs the risk of going too far and becoming demotivating, competition can be used as an interest builder (see "How to Keep Competition's Motivational Potential" on this page).
- Capitalize on people's desire to be part of a group. Peer pressure is a motivator in much the same way as announcing, "Only a few tickets left."
- Offer prizes and rewards directly associated with the activity; blue ribbons, door prizes, gold stars, free gifts, coupons, and certificates are the most common.
In preparing to implement a recreation program, consider the role of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation techniques. If they would help ensure the safety and enjoyment of the experience, try to acquire staff with these abilities or this training.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Appropriate staffing, funding, integrity vital to effective program evaluation
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
Many details must be considered when developing such a plan. Foremost are the elements of staffing, funding, and timing, as well as considerations for integrity and ethics. Overall, these are managed through a set of guidelines for establishing an evaluation system (see the checklist below).
- Link evaluation projects. Specific efforts to evaluate specific programs should be connected in an interwoven system that focuses on a joint and coordinated effort. This requires open communication among programmers and a transparent vision for organization-wide evaluation. For example, information collected in a summative evaluation for one program might be helpful when planning an evaluation project for another program. Or questionnaires prepared for one program's evaluation might also be used to evaluate another program. Individual program evaluations should answer questions about program service success for the entire organization. Overall, are you achieving your mission?
- Gain administrative support. Your supervisors should be involved in planning specific evaluation projects as well as the entire evaluation system. Also, an advisory committee may be useful in helping with individual evaluation projects and overseeing the overall evaluation system for the organization. Communication with administrators or an advisory group can help you develop insights and gain commitment to the study. For example, organization directors may be crucial for getting the cooperation of other program staff for an evaluation effort. Involving them will also mean a greater likelihood that the results from the evaluation will be used to improve programs and upgrade program policies.
- Designate staff. Your organization should designate a person who is ultimately responsible for program evaluation. This is essential for any coordinated and systematic evaluation effort. Sometimes the programmers themselves may fill this role, or when more sensitivity is needed, outside consultants or research specialists may be called in. As well, sometimes a staff member is appointed to oversee the organization's entire evaluation system, or an individual is designated for a specific program evaluation project.
Ideally, persons responsible for evaluation should be well versed in both qualitative and quantitative inquiry methods, should be able to analyze and interpret data, and should have excellent written and verbal communication skills (Russell, 2005). They should also be able to work objectively, not trying to prove a particular finding or distort or promote a specific conclusion. As well, they should be thorough, meticulous, and able to design and carry out evaluation studies using precise methods in order for the results to have any real value to the organization.
- Involve program participants. There are many reasons for involving program participants in evaluation. Involving them early and often can help them gain understanding of what the evaluation is all about, ultimately increasing their support for the study and the program. Program participants can learn why the evaluation is being conducted and how it will proceed. This may help them feel less threatened. It will also help them understand what the program is trying to accomplish. Best of all, including participants in program evaluation can vastly improve the evaluator's understanding of the worth of the program.
- Define roles and clarify authority structures. At the outset, those involved in an evaluation project-administrators, staff, and participants-should be very clear with each other about what is expected from them. The scope and limits of their roles need to be declared, ideally in written form. This not only helps ensure completeness-the elimination of gaps in the evaluation study-but also helps solve disagreements if they arise.
- Provide adequate funding. Costs of evaluation should be included in organizational operations budgets. Depending on their scope and method, evaluations can potentially be expensive. Personnel costs, in particular, must be considered in an evaluation budget because they are often the major expense category. Also, some supplies can be purchased inexpensively or are free, but others will require specifically earmarked funds. For example, some equipment, such as computers, may already be available, but specialized software, such as statistical and graphing programs, may need to be purchased. To augment organization-provided general operations budgets, grants can be a source of evaluation funding. In fact, most grants that fund programs require an evaluation component in the grant proposal. Regional foundations and state, provincial, and federal government agencies will sometimes fund entire evaluation studies. Evaluation expenses that should be included in an organization's budget or grant proposal include the following:
• Sample selection costs
• Travel expenses for interviewer(s)
• Materials costs for pretesting the evaluation procedures
• Supervisory costs for hiring an outside consultant and overseeing his or her work
• Staff training costs
• Labor and material costs for data entry
• Analyst costs for preparing tabulations and special data analyses
• Labor and materials costs for report preparation
• Telephone charges, postage, reproduction, and printing costs
- Ensure adequate time. Evaluation takes time. Some projects require several months to complete at a certain time of year, while others may take only a day and can be done during any season. For example, if you are interested in assessing downhill skiers' satisfaction with instructional programs at the ski resort, then administering a questionnaire to participants may take only a couple of days, but it will need to be done during the winter.
As well, since evaluators and decision makers have different time schedule demands, you should establish an agreed-upon time frame for the completion of an evaluation project (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Estimate how much time is needed for recruitment of study participants, data collection, data analysis, preparation of the final report, and so on. Planning for evaluation therefore requires development of a timetable, or time budget (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Both calendar and clock time need to be budgeted. A mistake many evaluators make is underestimating the time needed, resulting in late delivery of the report or missing the deadline altogether. We recommend that the time budget include a 20 percent "extra time" factor to compensate for this. - Provide useful feedback. Programmers are most appreciated by supervisors, advisory and policy groups, participants, and other program staff when the information gathered in the evaluation is perceived to be valuable. For example, suppose you wish to determine guest satisfaction with state park cabins. Measuring overall satisfaction is important, but even more useful information is possible by measuring specific satisfaction with such details as cabin design, cleanliness, linen service, the registration system, and proximity to park activities. These more targeted results increase the evaluation's value to a wider array of staff.
- Prepare an evaluation project proposal. An evaluation plan benefits from documented decisions about the purpose of a project and how it will be carried out. A formal proposal-a written description of the intentions of the evaluation-is useful for communicating your plans to others in the organization. In addition, the process of writing a proposal helps you think through the research steps you'll follow, helping you be more efficient in carrying out the study. It is much easier to find flaws in the evaluation project and correct them before beginning to collect information than it is to discover and correct problems after you have started.
- Keep evaluation projects going. Successful evaluation projects start out well organized and stay on track through the finish. Usually the person who develops the project proposal is the one who has the responsibility of seeing it through to completion. This might mean taking care of such logistics as recruiting respondents to questionnaires, printing and distributing questionnaires, monitoring the evaluation budget, and seeing that the final report is timely.
- Conduct evaluations ethically and with integrity. Integrity and ethics are essential for conducting a valid evaluation. Integrity refers to the validity of the information that is collected to determine the value of a program. Ethics is concerned with the treatment of the participants in the evaluation process.
First, how can you maintain evaluation integrity? Those who use the evaluation results want the information to be accurate; they apply what Weiss and Bucuvalas (1980) call truth tests in deciding how seriously to pay attention to an evaluation outcome-or its validity. Typically, a program evaluation is valid if it is "true, credible, and right" (House, 1980, p. 250). This means the nature of the evaluation process, the study design, the data gathering, and the way results are reported are honest. Both the evaluation (action) and the evaluator (person) must be perceived as trustworthy for the evaluation to have high validity (Russell, 2005). Only an honestly conducted evaluation can provide useful information and help an organization achieve its goals. The box on this page provides two illustrations of the negative effect an evaluation that lacks integrity can have.
Second, what are sound ethical practices in evaluation? Conducting ethical evaluations requires doing everything possible to treat the people, programs, and organizations studied graciously and honorably, including providing an environment that is safe and free of discrimination. One way to accomplish this is through informed consent-communication that ensures a potential evaluation respondent has sufficient information to decide whether to participate in the study. Typically, the respondent reads and signs a statement agreeing to participate in the study. The statement should describe the essential details of the study, including an explanation of the procedures, the potential benefits and risks of participation, the participant's rights to confidentiality, and the choice to participate. When children are involved in an evaluation, parents or guardians should sign an informed consent. Government-sponsored evaluations, as well as most professional associations, require informed consent.
Another factor that helps ensure an ethical evaluation is an approving authority. An approving authority, such as a special committee within or outside the organization, can review evaluation project proposals for fair treatment of the people and programs studied as well as for honorably collected information. For example, universities all have institutional review committees that must give approval for studies that use human subjects. Elementary and secondary school systems have committees to review studies that outside groups, such as park and recreation agencies, want to conduct within the schools. Similarly, hospitals have review committees that must give approval for studies done with patients.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Distinctiveness, memorability a must when naming rec programs
Naming a program focuses on developing “the hook”—something that gains attention. Your task is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest.
You may be tempted to think selecting a title or label for a program is easy and of no real significance. Yet stop and think about your own behavior when you glance through a recreation program brochure, skim an advertisement, or scan a Web site. Most people allocate only a few seconds when looking for program information. They are searching for things of interest to them. If a title catches their attention, they'll read more thoroughly (McCarville, 2002). So, your task in naming programs is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest and attention (see the box on this page for an example).
Names represent dominant cues to customers. Thus, a program's name may be one of the most important pieces of information you can offer to prospective patrons. Names represent "the hook that hangs the brand on the product" (Ries & Trout, 1986, p. 71). Consider the name Exercise Center. What happens to your interest when the name is changed to Weight and Stress Control Center? The program is no longer about exerting physical energy; it is about getting body weight and stress under control. Now the "brand" is wellness rather than effort.
Another example is the leisure service agency that renamed an adult swim program for novices. The new title? Swimming for the Absolutely Terrified. The new choice was not only more descriptive but also more memorable. As a result, the program increased in popularity, and the agency has expanded the "absolutely terrified" naming theme to include programs on learning to ski, using computers and the Internet, and high school diploma exam preparation (McCarville, 2002).
From a communication perspective, naming a program focuses on developing "the hook"-something that gains attention. The most successful hooks focus on benefits (McCarville, 2002). The logic is simple: Programs that are named according to what the patrons want will attract more patron attention. Useful program names tell what the service will do and make it easy for patrons to visualize the benefits (Burton & Purvis, 1996).
Here is some specific advice on naming programs. Essentially, in order to be effective communication tools, names should pass four basic tests (Berry & Parasuraman, 1991). The first test is distinctiveness. The program name must clearly distinguish itself from other programs. The term aerobics class, for example, is descriptive but doesn't distinguish one fitness program from another. Instead, why not name this program Latin Explosion, Cardio Studio, or Fitness Jumpstart (Division of Recreational Sports, 2004)?
The second naming test is relevance. The program name needs to provide an image that is meaningful to the target constituency. The name must also be an honest representation of the program itself. For example, the titles Lifeguard Instructor Training and Water Safety Instructor Training provide a meaningful message about the differences in the two programs (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006). Memorability is the third test. Memorability refers to how easily the name is understood and remembered. This requires that the name be creatively interesting and to the point. Clutter and dullness are not memorable. For example, Owl Prowl, Classy Casting, and Rip Roaring Rapids are easy to remember because of the rhyming and alliteration (Bloomington Parks & Recreation, 2004).
For the fourth test, the name must be flexible enough to allow easy changes in program content or format over time. For instance, a program titled Yoga or Pilates Sampler enables programmers to alternate which fitness activity is offered from season to season without having to change the program's name (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006).
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Motivation strategies keep recreation program participants coming back
A good staff member should be able to keep program participants energized and motivated.
Another important function of staff is energizing participants, providing direction, and helping sustain recreational behavior (Russell, 2005). This is referred to as motivation. Motivation encompasses efforts to initiate, sustain, and stop behavior.
Because motivation is something within a person, we cannot describe the motivation of others directly. But research allows us to understand some principles of motivation. For example, positive reinforcement of a behavior increases the likelihood that the same behavior will be repeated, whereas negative reinforcement makes it more likely the same behavior will not be repeated.
There are two types of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic motivation means the behavior itself is positively reinforcing. Intrinsic motivation is doing something simply because it is interesting and personally meaningful. Ideally, all recreation participation is intrinsically motivated. Indeed, as Iso-Ahola (1982) explains, the participant initially chooses a recreation activity with the expectation that the activity will provide a feeling of freedom of choice and competence. On the other hand, extrinsic motivation comes from outside the behavior. The positive reinforcement is artificially established-a prize can be won, recognition can be awarded, weight can be lost, others can be impressed. Recreation program staff are able to manage participant motivation through both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.
Increasing intrinsic motivation revolves around strategies to increase participants' perceptions of success. Here are some suggestions (Weinberg & Gould, 1995; Bateman & Snell, 2002; Russell, 2005):
- Match skill levels of participants with the challenges required in the activity (e.g., use higher-classified white-water rivers for experienced boaters); see the box on page 163.
- Use verbal and nonverbal praise; this is especially important for participants who receive little recognition otherwise.
- Involve participants in decision making; people perceive they have greater competency when they make their own decisions, which in turn increases intrinsic motivation.
- Share the power with participants; confidence in one's worth is profoundly motivating.
- Be sure participants are ready to participate in the program (i.e., they have the knowledge and skills to enjoy a particular activity).
- Enhance the appropriateness of physical properties of the program setting (e.g., lower the lighting, turn up the music volume, and watch them dance!).
- Develop programs that include a planned progression. Some common examples are merit badges in scouting; A and B teams in sports; first, second, and third seats in an orchestra; and white, brown, and black belts in karate.
Using extrinsic motivation to guide recreation program interest and behavior is also common, especially when intrinsic motivation is not present. Here is a sampling of suggestions (Russell, 2005) for extrinsically motivating participation in recreation programs:
- Emphasize the status of the activity. Provide membership cards, mugs, uniforms, patches, T-shirts, well-maintained equipment, and other status symbols.
- Carefully employ well-planned and well-controlled competition. Although it runs the risk of going too far and becoming demotivating, competition can be used as an interest builder (see "How to Keep Competition's Motivational Potential" on this page).
- Capitalize on people's desire to be part of a group. Peer pressure is a motivator in much the same way as announcing, "Only a few tickets left."
- Offer prizes and rewards directly associated with the activity; blue ribbons, door prizes, gold stars, free gifts, coupons, and certificates are the most common.
In preparing to implement a recreation program, consider the role of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation techniques. If they would help ensure the safety and enjoyment of the experience, try to acquire staff with these abilities or this training.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Appropriate staffing, funding, integrity vital to effective program evaluation
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
Many details must be considered when developing such a plan. Foremost are the elements of staffing, funding, and timing, as well as considerations for integrity and ethics. Overall, these are managed through a set of guidelines for establishing an evaluation system (see the checklist below).
- Link evaluation projects. Specific efforts to evaluate specific programs should be connected in an interwoven system that focuses on a joint and coordinated effort. This requires open communication among programmers and a transparent vision for organization-wide evaluation. For example, information collected in a summative evaluation for one program might be helpful when planning an evaluation project for another program. Or questionnaires prepared for one program's evaluation might also be used to evaluate another program. Individual program evaluations should answer questions about program service success for the entire organization. Overall, are you achieving your mission?
- Gain administrative support. Your supervisors should be involved in planning specific evaluation projects as well as the entire evaluation system. Also, an advisory committee may be useful in helping with individual evaluation projects and overseeing the overall evaluation system for the organization. Communication with administrators or an advisory group can help you develop insights and gain commitment to the study. For example, organization directors may be crucial for getting the cooperation of other program staff for an evaluation effort. Involving them will also mean a greater likelihood that the results from the evaluation will be used to improve programs and upgrade program policies.
- Designate staff. Your organization should designate a person who is ultimately responsible for program evaluation. This is essential for any coordinated and systematic evaluation effort. Sometimes the programmers themselves may fill this role, or when more sensitivity is needed, outside consultants or research specialists may be called in. As well, sometimes a staff member is appointed to oversee the organization's entire evaluation system, or an individual is designated for a specific program evaluation project.
Ideally, persons responsible for evaluation should be well versed in both qualitative and quantitative inquiry methods, should be able to analyze and interpret data, and should have excellent written and verbal communication skills (Russell, 2005). They should also be able to work objectively, not trying to prove a particular finding or distort or promote a specific conclusion. As well, they should be thorough, meticulous, and able to design and carry out evaluation studies using precise methods in order for the results to have any real value to the organization.
- Involve program participants. There are many reasons for involving program participants in evaluation. Involving them early and often can help them gain understanding of what the evaluation is all about, ultimately increasing their support for the study and the program. Program participants can learn why the evaluation is being conducted and how it will proceed. This may help them feel less threatened. It will also help them understand what the program is trying to accomplish. Best of all, including participants in program evaluation can vastly improve the evaluator's understanding of the worth of the program.
- Define roles and clarify authority structures. At the outset, those involved in an evaluation project-administrators, staff, and participants-should be very clear with each other about what is expected from them. The scope and limits of their roles need to be declared, ideally in written form. This not only helps ensure completeness-the elimination of gaps in the evaluation study-but also helps solve disagreements if they arise.
- Provide adequate funding. Costs of evaluation should be included in organizational operations budgets. Depending on their scope and method, evaluations can potentially be expensive. Personnel costs, in particular, must be considered in an evaluation budget because they are often the major expense category. Also, some supplies can be purchased inexpensively or are free, but others will require specifically earmarked funds. For example, some equipment, such as computers, may already be available, but specialized software, such as statistical and graphing programs, may need to be purchased. To augment organization-provided general operations budgets, grants can be a source of evaluation funding. In fact, most grants that fund programs require an evaluation component in the grant proposal. Regional foundations and state, provincial, and federal government agencies will sometimes fund entire evaluation studies. Evaluation expenses that should be included in an organization's budget or grant proposal include the following:
• Sample selection costs
• Travel expenses for interviewer(s)
• Materials costs for pretesting the evaluation procedures
• Supervisory costs for hiring an outside consultant and overseeing his or her work
• Staff training costs
• Labor and material costs for data entry
• Analyst costs for preparing tabulations and special data analyses
• Labor and materials costs for report preparation
• Telephone charges, postage, reproduction, and printing costs
- Ensure adequate time. Evaluation takes time. Some projects require several months to complete at a certain time of year, while others may take only a day and can be done during any season. For example, if you are interested in assessing downhill skiers' satisfaction with instructional programs at the ski resort, then administering a questionnaire to participants may take only a couple of days, but it will need to be done during the winter.
As well, since evaluators and decision makers have different time schedule demands, you should establish an agreed-upon time frame for the completion of an evaluation project (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Estimate how much time is needed for recruitment of study participants, data collection, data analysis, preparation of the final report, and so on. Planning for evaluation therefore requires development of a timetable, or time budget (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Both calendar and clock time need to be budgeted. A mistake many evaluators make is underestimating the time needed, resulting in late delivery of the report or missing the deadline altogether. We recommend that the time budget include a 20 percent "extra time" factor to compensate for this. - Provide useful feedback. Programmers are most appreciated by supervisors, advisory and policy groups, participants, and other program staff when the information gathered in the evaluation is perceived to be valuable. For example, suppose you wish to determine guest satisfaction with state park cabins. Measuring overall satisfaction is important, but even more useful information is possible by measuring specific satisfaction with such details as cabin design, cleanliness, linen service, the registration system, and proximity to park activities. These more targeted results increase the evaluation's value to a wider array of staff.
- Prepare an evaluation project proposal. An evaluation plan benefits from documented decisions about the purpose of a project and how it will be carried out. A formal proposal-a written description of the intentions of the evaluation-is useful for communicating your plans to others in the organization. In addition, the process of writing a proposal helps you think through the research steps you'll follow, helping you be more efficient in carrying out the study. It is much easier to find flaws in the evaluation project and correct them before beginning to collect information than it is to discover and correct problems after you have started.
- Keep evaluation projects going. Successful evaluation projects start out well organized and stay on track through the finish. Usually the person who develops the project proposal is the one who has the responsibility of seeing it through to completion. This might mean taking care of such logistics as recruiting respondents to questionnaires, printing and distributing questionnaires, monitoring the evaluation budget, and seeing that the final report is timely.
- Conduct evaluations ethically and with integrity. Integrity and ethics are essential for conducting a valid evaluation. Integrity refers to the validity of the information that is collected to determine the value of a program. Ethics is concerned with the treatment of the participants in the evaluation process.
First, how can you maintain evaluation integrity? Those who use the evaluation results want the information to be accurate; they apply what Weiss and Bucuvalas (1980) call truth tests in deciding how seriously to pay attention to an evaluation outcome-or its validity. Typically, a program evaluation is valid if it is "true, credible, and right" (House, 1980, p. 250). This means the nature of the evaluation process, the study design, the data gathering, and the way results are reported are honest. Both the evaluation (action) and the evaluator (person) must be perceived as trustworthy for the evaluation to have high validity (Russell, 2005). Only an honestly conducted evaluation can provide useful information and help an organization achieve its goals. The box on this page provides two illustrations of the negative effect an evaluation that lacks integrity can have.
Second, what are sound ethical practices in evaluation? Conducting ethical evaluations requires doing everything possible to treat the people, programs, and organizations studied graciously and honorably, including providing an environment that is safe and free of discrimination. One way to accomplish this is through informed consent-communication that ensures a potential evaluation respondent has sufficient information to decide whether to participate in the study. Typically, the respondent reads and signs a statement agreeing to participate in the study. The statement should describe the essential details of the study, including an explanation of the procedures, the potential benefits and risks of participation, the participant's rights to confidentiality, and the choice to participate. When children are involved in an evaluation, parents or guardians should sign an informed consent. Government-sponsored evaluations, as well as most professional associations, require informed consent.
Another factor that helps ensure an ethical evaluation is an approving authority. An approving authority, such as a special committee within or outside the organization, can review evaluation project proposals for fair treatment of the people and programs studied as well as for honorably collected information. For example, universities all have institutional review committees that must give approval for studies that use human subjects. Elementary and secondary school systems have committees to review studies that outside groups, such as park and recreation agencies, want to conduct within the schools. Similarly, hospitals have review committees that must give approval for studies done with patients.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Distinctiveness, memorability a must when naming rec programs
Naming a program focuses on developing “the hook”—something that gains attention. Your task is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest.
You may be tempted to think selecting a title or label for a program is easy and of no real significance. Yet stop and think about your own behavior when you glance through a recreation program brochure, skim an advertisement, or scan a Web site. Most people allocate only a few seconds when looking for program information. They are searching for things of interest to them. If a title catches their attention, they'll read more thoroughly (McCarville, 2002). So, your task in naming programs is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest and attention (see the box on this page for an example).
Names represent dominant cues to customers. Thus, a program's name may be one of the most important pieces of information you can offer to prospective patrons. Names represent "the hook that hangs the brand on the product" (Ries & Trout, 1986, p. 71). Consider the name Exercise Center. What happens to your interest when the name is changed to Weight and Stress Control Center? The program is no longer about exerting physical energy; it is about getting body weight and stress under control. Now the "brand" is wellness rather than effort.
Another example is the leisure service agency that renamed an adult swim program for novices. The new title? Swimming for the Absolutely Terrified. The new choice was not only more descriptive but also more memorable. As a result, the program increased in popularity, and the agency has expanded the "absolutely terrified" naming theme to include programs on learning to ski, using computers and the Internet, and high school diploma exam preparation (McCarville, 2002).
From a communication perspective, naming a program focuses on developing "the hook"-something that gains attention. The most successful hooks focus on benefits (McCarville, 2002). The logic is simple: Programs that are named according to what the patrons want will attract more patron attention. Useful program names tell what the service will do and make it easy for patrons to visualize the benefits (Burton & Purvis, 1996).
Here is some specific advice on naming programs. Essentially, in order to be effective communication tools, names should pass four basic tests (Berry & Parasuraman, 1991). The first test is distinctiveness. The program name must clearly distinguish itself from other programs. The term aerobics class, for example, is descriptive but doesn't distinguish one fitness program from another. Instead, why not name this program Latin Explosion, Cardio Studio, or Fitness Jumpstart (Division of Recreational Sports, 2004)?
The second naming test is relevance. The program name needs to provide an image that is meaningful to the target constituency. The name must also be an honest representation of the program itself. For example, the titles Lifeguard Instructor Training and Water Safety Instructor Training provide a meaningful message about the differences in the two programs (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006). Memorability is the third test. Memorability refers to how easily the name is understood and remembered. This requires that the name be creatively interesting and to the point. Clutter and dullness are not memorable. For example, Owl Prowl, Classy Casting, and Rip Roaring Rapids are easy to remember because of the rhyming and alliteration (Bloomington Parks & Recreation, 2004).
For the fourth test, the name must be flexible enough to allow easy changes in program content or format over time. For instance, a program titled Yoga or Pilates Sampler enables programmers to alternate which fitness activity is offered from season to season without having to change the program's name (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006).
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Motivation strategies keep recreation program participants coming back
A good staff member should be able to keep program participants energized and motivated.
Another important function of staff is energizing participants, providing direction, and helping sustain recreational behavior (Russell, 2005). This is referred to as motivation. Motivation encompasses efforts to initiate, sustain, and stop behavior.
Because motivation is something within a person, we cannot describe the motivation of others directly. But research allows us to understand some principles of motivation. For example, positive reinforcement of a behavior increases the likelihood that the same behavior will be repeated, whereas negative reinforcement makes it more likely the same behavior will not be repeated.
There are two types of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic motivation means the behavior itself is positively reinforcing. Intrinsic motivation is doing something simply because it is interesting and personally meaningful. Ideally, all recreation participation is intrinsically motivated. Indeed, as Iso-Ahola (1982) explains, the participant initially chooses a recreation activity with the expectation that the activity will provide a feeling of freedom of choice and competence. On the other hand, extrinsic motivation comes from outside the behavior. The positive reinforcement is artificially established-a prize can be won, recognition can be awarded, weight can be lost, others can be impressed. Recreation program staff are able to manage participant motivation through both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.
Increasing intrinsic motivation revolves around strategies to increase participants' perceptions of success. Here are some suggestions (Weinberg & Gould, 1995; Bateman & Snell, 2002; Russell, 2005):
- Match skill levels of participants with the challenges required in the activity (e.g., use higher-classified white-water rivers for experienced boaters); see the box on page 163.
- Use verbal and nonverbal praise; this is especially important for participants who receive little recognition otherwise.
- Involve participants in decision making; people perceive they have greater competency when they make their own decisions, which in turn increases intrinsic motivation.
- Share the power with participants; confidence in one's worth is profoundly motivating.
- Be sure participants are ready to participate in the program (i.e., they have the knowledge and skills to enjoy a particular activity).
- Enhance the appropriateness of physical properties of the program setting (e.g., lower the lighting, turn up the music volume, and watch them dance!).
- Develop programs that include a planned progression. Some common examples are merit badges in scouting; A and B teams in sports; first, second, and third seats in an orchestra; and white, brown, and black belts in karate.
Using extrinsic motivation to guide recreation program interest and behavior is also common, especially when intrinsic motivation is not present. Here is a sampling of suggestions (Russell, 2005) for extrinsically motivating participation in recreation programs:
- Emphasize the status of the activity. Provide membership cards, mugs, uniforms, patches, T-shirts, well-maintained equipment, and other status symbols.
- Carefully employ well-planned and well-controlled competition. Although it runs the risk of going too far and becoming demotivating, competition can be used as an interest builder (see "How to Keep Competition's Motivational Potential" on this page).
- Capitalize on people's desire to be part of a group. Peer pressure is a motivator in much the same way as announcing, "Only a few tickets left."
- Offer prizes and rewards directly associated with the activity; blue ribbons, door prizes, gold stars, free gifts, coupons, and certificates are the most common.
In preparing to implement a recreation program, consider the role of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation techniques. If they would help ensure the safety and enjoyment of the experience, try to acquire staff with these abilities or this training.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Appropriate staffing, funding, integrity vital to effective program evaluation
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
Many details must be considered when developing such a plan. Foremost are the elements of staffing, funding, and timing, as well as considerations for integrity and ethics. Overall, these are managed through a set of guidelines for establishing an evaluation system (see the checklist below).
- Link evaluation projects. Specific efforts to evaluate specific programs should be connected in an interwoven system that focuses on a joint and coordinated effort. This requires open communication among programmers and a transparent vision for organization-wide evaluation. For example, information collected in a summative evaluation for one program might be helpful when planning an evaluation project for another program. Or questionnaires prepared for one program's evaluation might also be used to evaluate another program. Individual program evaluations should answer questions about program service success for the entire organization. Overall, are you achieving your mission?
- Gain administrative support. Your supervisors should be involved in planning specific evaluation projects as well as the entire evaluation system. Also, an advisory committee may be useful in helping with individual evaluation projects and overseeing the overall evaluation system for the organization. Communication with administrators or an advisory group can help you develop insights and gain commitment to the study. For example, organization directors may be crucial for getting the cooperation of other program staff for an evaluation effort. Involving them will also mean a greater likelihood that the results from the evaluation will be used to improve programs and upgrade program policies.
- Designate staff. Your organization should designate a person who is ultimately responsible for program evaluation. This is essential for any coordinated and systematic evaluation effort. Sometimes the programmers themselves may fill this role, or when more sensitivity is needed, outside consultants or research specialists may be called in. As well, sometimes a staff member is appointed to oversee the organization's entire evaluation system, or an individual is designated for a specific program evaluation project.
Ideally, persons responsible for evaluation should be well versed in both qualitative and quantitative inquiry methods, should be able to analyze and interpret data, and should have excellent written and verbal communication skills (Russell, 2005). They should also be able to work objectively, not trying to prove a particular finding or distort or promote a specific conclusion. As well, they should be thorough, meticulous, and able to design and carry out evaluation studies using precise methods in order for the results to have any real value to the organization.
- Involve program participants. There are many reasons for involving program participants in evaluation. Involving them early and often can help them gain understanding of what the evaluation is all about, ultimately increasing their support for the study and the program. Program participants can learn why the evaluation is being conducted and how it will proceed. This may help them feel less threatened. It will also help them understand what the program is trying to accomplish. Best of all, including participants in program evaluation can vastly improve the evaluator's understanding of the worth of the program.
- Define roles and clarify authority structures. At the outset, those involved in an evaluation project-administrators, staff, and participants-should be very clear with each other about what is expected from them. The scope and limits of their roles need to be declared, ideally in written form. This not only helps ensure completeness-the elimination of gaps in the evaluation study-but also helps solve disagreements if they arise.
- Provide adequate funding. Costs of evaluation should be included in organizational operations budgets. Depending on their scope and method, evaluations can potentially be expensive. Personnel costs, in particular, must be considered in an evaluation budget because they are often the major expense category. Also, some supplies can be purchased inexpensively or are free, but others will require specifically earmarked funds. For example, some equipment, such as computers, may already be available, but specialized software, such as statistical and graphing programs, may need to be purchased. To augment organization-provided general operations budgets, grants can be a source of evaluation funding. In fact, most grants that fund programs require an evaluation component in the grant proposal. Regional foundations and state, provincial, and federal government agencies will sometimes fund entire evaluation studies. Evaluation expenses that should be included in an organization's budget or grant proposal include the following:
• Sample selection costs
• Travel expenses for interviewer(s)
• Materials costs for pretesting the evaluation procedures
• Supervisory costs for hiring an outside consultant and overseeing his or her work
• Staff training costs
• Labor and material costs for data entry
• Analyst costs for preparing tabulations and special data analyses
• Labor and materials costs for report preparation
• Telephone charges, postage, reproduction, and printing costs
- Ensure adequate time. Evaluation takes time. Some projects require several months to complete at a certain time of year, while others may take only a day and can be done during any season. For example, if you are interested in assessing downhill skiers' satisfaction with instructional programs at the ski resort, then administering a questionnaire to participants may take only a couple of days, but it will need to be done during the winter.
As well, since evaluators and decision makers have different time schedule demands, you should establish an agreed-upon time frame for the completion of an evaluation project (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Estimate how much time is needed for recruitment of study participants, data collection, data analysis, preparation of the final report, and so on. Planning for evaluation therefore requires development of a timetable, or time budget (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Both calendar and clock time need to be budgeted. A mistake many evaluators make is underestimating the time needed, resulting in late delivery of the report or missing the deadline altogether. We recommend that the time budget include a 20 percent "extra time" factor to compensate for this. - Provide useful feedback. Programmers are most appreciated by supervisors, advisory and policy groups, participants, and other program staff when the information gathered in the evaluation is perceived to be valuable. For example, suppose you wish to determine guest satisfaction with state park cabins. Measuring overall satisfaction is important, but even more useful information is possible by measuring specific satisfaction with such details as cabin design, cleanliness, linen service, the registration system, and proximity to park activities. These more targeted results increase the evaluation's value to a wider array of staff.
- Prepare an evaluation project proposal. An evaluation plan benefits from documented decisions about the purpose of a project and how it will be carried out. A formal proposal-a written description of the intentions of the evaluation-is useful for communicating your plans to others in the organization. In addition, the process of writing a proposal helps you think through the research steps you'll follow, helping you be more efficient in carrying out the study. It is much easier to find flaws in the evaluation project and correct them before beginning to collect information than it is to discover and correct problems after you have started.
- Keep evaluation projects going. Successful evaluation projects start out well organized and stay on track through the finish. Usually the person who develops the project proposal is the one who has the responsibility of seeing it through to completion. This might mean taking care of such logistics as recruiting respondents to questionnaires, printing and distributing questionnaires, monitoring the evaluation budget, and seeing that the final report is timely.
- Conduct evaluations ethically and with integrity. Integrity and ethics are essential for conducting a valid evaluation. Integrity refers to the validity of the information that is collected to determine the value of a program. Ethics is concerned with the treatment of the participants in the evaluation process.
First, how can you maintain evaluation integrity? Those who use the evaluation results want the information to be accurate; they apply what Weiss and Bucuvalas (1980) call truth tests in deciding how seriously to pay attention to an evaluation outcome-or its validity. Typically, a program evaluation is valid if it is "true, credible, and right" (House, 1980, p. 250). This means the nature of the evaluation process, the study design, the data gathering, and the way results are reported are honest. Both the evaluation (action) and the evaluator (person) must be perceived as trustworthy for the evaluation to have high validity (Russell, 2005). Only an honestly conducted evaluation can provide useful information and help an organization achieve its goals. The box on this page provides two illustrations of the negative effect an evaluation that lacks integrity can have.
Second, what are sound ethical practices in evaluation? Conducting ethical evaluations requires doing everything possible to treat the people, programs, and organizations studied graciously and honorably, including providing an environment that is safe and free of discrimination. One way to accomplish this is through informed consent-communication that ensures a potential evaluation respondent has sufficient information to decide whether to participate in the study. Typically, the respondent reads and signs a statement agreeing to participate in the study. The statement should describe the essential details of the study, including an explanation of the procedures, the potential benefits and risks of participation, the participant's rights to confidentiality, and the choice to participate. When children are involved in an evaluation, parents or guardians should sign an informed consent. Government-sponsored evaluations, as well as most professional associations, require informed consent.
Another factor that helps ensure an ethical evaluation is an approving authority. An approving authority, such as a special committee within or outside the organization, can review evaluation project proposals for fair treatment of the people and programs studied as well as for honorably collected information. For example, universities all have institutional review committees that must give approval for studies that use human subjects. Elementary and secondary school systems have committees to review studies that outside groups, such as park and recreation agencies, want to conduct within the schools. Similarly, hospitals have review committees that must give approval for studies done with patients.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Distinctiveness, memorability a must when naming rec programs
Naming a program focuses on developing “the hook”—something that gains attention. Your task is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest.
You may be tempted to think selecting a title or label for a program is easy and of no real significance. Yet stop and think about your own behavior when you glance through a recreation program brochure, skim an advertisement, or scan a Web site. Most people allocate only a few seconds when looking for program information. They are searching for things of interest to them. If a title catches their attention, they'll read more thoroughly (McCarville, 2002). So, your task in naming programs is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest and attention (see the box on this page for an example).
Names represent dominant cues to customers. Thus, a program's name may be one of the most important pieces of information you can offer to prospective patrons. Names represent "the hook that hangs the brand on the product" (Ries & Trout, 1986, p. 71). Consider the name Exercise Center. What happens to your interest when the name is changed to Weight and Stress Control Center? The program is no longer about exerting physical energy; it is about getting body weight and stress under control. Now the "brand" is wellness rather than effort.
Another example is the leisure service agency that renamed an adult swim program for novices. The new title? Swimming for the Absolutely Terrified. The new choice was not only more descriptive but also more memorable. As a result, the program increased in popularity, and the agency has expanded the "absolutely terrified" naming theme to include programs on learning to ski, using computers and the Internet, and high school diploma exam preparation (McCarville, 2002).
From a communication perspective, naming a program focuses on developing "the hook"-something that gains attention. The most successful hooks focus on benefits (McCarville, 2002). The logic is simple: Programs that are named according to what the patrons want will attract more patron attention. Useful program names tell what the service will do and make it easy for patrons to visualize the benefits (Burton & Purvis, 1996).
Here is some specific advice on naming programs. Essentially, in order to be effective communication tools, names should pass four basic tests (Berry & Parasuraman, 1991). The first test is distinctiveness. The program name must clearly distinguish itself from other programs. The term aerobics class, for example, is descriptive but doesn't distinguish one fitness program from another. Instead, why not name this program Latin Explosion, Cardio Studio, or Fitness Jumpstart (Division of Recreational Sports, 2004)?
The second naming test is relevance. The program name needs to provide an image that is meaningful to the target constituency. The name must also be an honest representation of the program itself. For example, the titles Lifeguard Instructor Training and Water Safety Instructor Training provide a meaningful message about the differences in the two programs (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006). Memorability is the third test. Memorability refers to how easily the name is understood and remembered. This requires that the name be creatively interesting and to the point. Clutter and dullness are not memorable. For example, Owl Prowl, Classy Casting, and Rip Roaring Rapids are easy to remember because of the rhyming and alliteration (Bloomington Parks & Recreation, 2004).
For the fourth test, the name must be flexible enough to allow easy changes in program content or format over time. For instance, a program titled Yoga or Pilates Sampler enables programmers to alternate which fitness activity is offered from season to season without having to change the program's name (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006).
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Motivation strategies keep recreation program participants coming back
A good staff member should be able to keep program participants energized and motivated.
Another important function of staff is energizing participants, providing direction, and helping sustain recreational behavior (Russell, 2005). This is referred to as motivation. Motivation encompasses efforts to initiate, sustain, and stop behavior.
Because motivation is something within a person, we cannot describe the motivation of others directly. But research allows us to understand some principles of motivation. For example, positive reinforcement of a behavior increases the likelihood that the same behavior will be repeated, whereas negative reinforcement makes it more likely the same behavior will not be repeated.
There are two types of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic motivation means the behavior itself is positively reinforcing. Intrinsic motivation is doing something simply because it is interesting and personally meaningful. Ideally, all recreation participation is intrinsically motivated. Indeed, as Iso-Ahola (1982) explains, the participant initially chooses a recreation activity with the expectation that the activity will provide a feeling of freedom of choice and competence. On the other hand, extrinsic motivation comes from outside the behavior. The positive reinforcement is artificially established-a prize can be won, recognition can be awarded, weight can be lost, others can be impressed. Recreation program staff are able to manage participant motivation through both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.
Increasing intrinsic motivation revolves around strategies to increase participants' perceptions of success. Here are some suggestions (Weinberg & Gould, 1995; Bateman & Snell, 2002; Russell, 2005):
- Match skill levels of participants with the challenges required in the activity (e.g., use higher-classified white-water rivers for experienced boaters); see the box on page 163.
- Use verbal and nonverbal praise; this is especially important for participants who receive little recognition otherwise.
- Involve participants in decision making; people perceive they have greater competency when they make their own decisions, which in turn increases intrinsic motivation.
- Share the power with participants; confidence in one's worth is profoundly motivating.
- Be sure participants are ready to participate in the program (i.e., they have the knowledge and skills to enjoy a particular activity).
- Enhance the appropriateness of physical properties of the program setting (e.g., lower the lighting, turn up the music volume, and watch them dance!).
- Develop programs that include a planned progression. Some common examples are merit badges in scouting; A and B teams in sports; first, second, and third seats in an orchestra; and white, brown, and black belts in karate.
Using extrinsic motivation to guide recreation program interest and behavior is also common, especially when intrinsic motivation is not present. Here is a sampling of suggestions (Russell, 2005) for extrinsically motivating participation in recreation programs:
- Emphasize the status of the activity. Provide membership cards, mugs, uniforms, patches, T-shirts, well-maintained equipment, and other status symbols.
- Carefully employ well-planned and well-controlled competition. Although it runs the risk of going too far and becoming demotivating, competition can be used as an interest builder (see "How to Keep Competition's Motivational Potential" on this page).
- Capitalize on people's desire to be part of a group. Peer pressure is a motivator in much the same way as announcing, "Only a few tickets left."
- Offer prizes and rewards directly associated with the activity; blue ribbons, door prizes, gold stars, free gifts, coupons, and certificates are the most common.
In preparing to implement a recreation program, consider the role of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation techniques. If they would help ensure the safety and enjoyment of the experience, try to acquire staff with these abilities or this training.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Appropriate staffing, funding, integrity vital to effective program evaluation
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
In an ideal world, recreation programs would be continually and thoroughly evaluated. Yet, without a systematic plan for evaluation, you and your organization will be left with only the best of intentions.
Many details must be considered when developing such a plan. Foremost are the elements of staffing, funding, and timing, as well as considerations for integrity and ethics. Overall, these are managed through a set of guidelines for establishing an evaluation system (see the checklist below).
- Link evaluation projects. Specific efforts to evaluate specific programs should be connected in an interwoven system that focuses on a joint and coordinated effort. This requires open communication among programmers and a transparent vision for organization-wide evaluation. For example, information collected in a summative evaluation for one program might be helpful when planning an evaluation project for another program. Or questionnaires prepared for one program's evaluation might also be used to evaluate another program. Individual program evaluations should answer questions about program service success for the entire organization. Overall, are you achieving your mission?
- Gain administrative support. Your supervisors should be involved in planning specific evaluation projects as well as the entire evaluation system. Also, an advisory committee may be useful in helping with individual evaluation projects and overseeing the overall evaluation system for the organization. Communication with administrators or an advisory group can help you develop insights and gain commitment to the study. For example, organization directors may be crucial for getting the cooperation of other program staff for an evaluation effort. Involving them will also mean a greater likelihood that the results from the evaluation will be used to improve programs and upgrade program policies.
- Designate staff. Your organization should designate a person who is ultimately responsible for program evaluation. This is essential for any coordinated and systematic evaluation effort. Sometimes the programmers themselves may fill this role, or when more sensitivity is needed, outside consultants or research specialists may be called in. As well, sometimes a staff member is appointed to oversee the organization's entire evaluation system, or an individual is designated for a specific program evaluation project.
Ideally, persons responsible for evaluation should be well versed in both qualitative and quantitative inquiry methods, should be able to analyze and interpret data, and should have excellent written and verbal communication skills (Russell, 2005). They should also be able to work objectively, not trying to prove a particular finding or distort or promote a specific conclusion. As well, they should be thorough, meticulous, and able to design and carry out evaluation studies using precise methods in order for the results to have any real value to the organization.
- Involve program participants. There are many reasons for involving program participants in evaluation. Involving them early and often can help them gain understanding of what the evaluation is all about, ultimately increasing their support for the study and the program. Program participants can learn why the evaluation is being conducted and how it will proceed. This may help them feel less threatened. It will also help them understand what the program is trying to accomplish. Best of all, including participants in program evaluation can vastly improve the evaluator's understanding of the worth of the program.
- Define roles and clarify authority structures. At the outset, those involved in an evaluation project-administrators, staff, and participants-should be very clear with each other about what is expected from them. The scope and limits of their roles need to be declared, ideally in written form. This not only helps ensure completeness-the elimination of gaps in the evaluation study-but also helps solve disagreements if they arise.
- Provide adequate funding. Costs of evaluation should be included in organizational operations budgets. Depending on their scope and method, evaluations can potentially be expensive. Personnel costs, in particular, must be considered in an evaluation budget because they are often the major expense category. Also, some supplies can be purchased inexpensively or are free, but others will require specifically earmarked funds. For example, some equipment, such as computers, may already be available, but specialized software, such as statistical and graphing programs, may need to be purchased. To augment organization-provided general operations budgets, grants can be a source of evaluation funding. In fact, most grants that fund programs require an evaluation component in the grant proposal. Regional foundations and state, provincial, and federal government agencies will sometimes fund entire evaluation studies. Evaluation expenses that should be included in an organization's budget or grant proposal include the following:
• Sample selection costs
• Travel expenses for interviewer(s)
• Materials costs for pretesting the evaluation procedures
• Supervisory costs for hiring an outside consultant and overseeing his or her work
• Staff training costs
• Labor and material costs for data entry
• Analyst costs for preparing tabulations and special data analyses
• Labor and materials costs for report preparation
• Telephone charges, postage, reproduction, and printing costs
- Ensure adequate time. Evaluation takes time. Some projects require several months to complete at a certain time of year, while others may take only a day and can be done during any season. For example, if you are interested in assessing downhill skiers' satisfaction with instructional programs at the ski resort, then administering a questionnaire to participants may take only a couple of days, but it will need to be done during the winter.
As well, since evaluators and decision makers have different time schedule demands, you should establish an agreed-upon time frame for the completion of an evaluation project (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Estimate how much time is needed for recruitment of study participants, data collection, data analysis, preparation of the final report, and so on. Planning for evaluation therefore requires development of a timetable, or time budget (Riddick & Russell, 1999). Both calendar and clock time need to be budgeted. A mistake many evaluators make is underestimating the time needed, resulting in late delivery of the report or missing the deadline altogether. We recommend that the time budget include a 20 percent "extra time" factor to compensate for this. - Provide useful feedback. Programmers are most appreciated by supervisors, advisory and policy groups, participants, and other program staff when the information gathered in the evaluation is perceived to be valuable. For example, suppose you wish to determine guest satisfaction with state park cabins. Measuring overall satisfaction is important, but even more useful information is possible by measuring specific satisfaction with such details as cabin design, cleanliness, linen service, the registration system, and proximity to park activities. These more targeted results increase the evaluation's value to a wider array of staff.
- Prepare an evaluation project proposal. An evaluation plan benefits from documented decisions about the purpose of a project and how it will be carried out. A formal proposal-a written description of the intentions of the evaluation-is useful for communicating your plans to others in the organization. In addition, the process of writing a proposal helps you think through the research steps you'll follow, helping you be more efficient in carrying out the study. It is much easier to find flaws in the evaluation project and correct them before beginning to collect information than it is to discover and correct problems after you have started.
- Keep evaluation projects going. Successful evaluation projects start out well organized and stay on track through the finish. Usually the person who develops the project proposal is the one who has the responsibility of seeing it through to completion. This might mean taking care of such logistics as recruiting respondents to questionnaires, printing and distributing questionnaires, monitoring the evaluation budget, and seeing that the final report is timely.
- Conduct evaluations ethically and with integrity. Integrity and ethics are essential for conducting a valid evaluation. Integrity refers to the validity of the information that is collected to determine the value of a program. Ethics is concerned with the treatment of the participants in the evaluation process.
First, how can you maintain evaluation integrity? Those who use the evaluation results want the information to be accurate; they apply what Weiss and Bucuvalas (1980) call truth tests in deciding how seriously to pay attention to an evaluation outcome-or its validity. Typically, a program evaluation is valid if it is "true, credible, and right" (House, 1980, p. 250). This means the nature of the evaluation process, the study design, the data gathering, and the way results are reported are honest. Both the evaluation (action) and the evaluator (person) must be perceived as trustworthy for the evaluation to have high validity (Russell, 2005). Only an honestly conducted evaluation can provide useful information and help an organization achieve its goals. The box on this page provides two illustrations of the negative effect an evaluation that lacks integrity can have.
Second, what are sound ethical practices in evaluation? Conducting ethical evaluations requires doing everything possible to treat the people, programs, and organizations studied graciously and honorably, including providing an environment that is safe and free of discrimination. One way to accomplish this is through informed consent-communication that ensures a potential evaluation respondent has sufficient information to decide whether to participate in the study. Typically, the respondent reads and signs a statement agreeing to participate in the study. The statement should describe the essential details of the study, including an explanation of the procedures, the potential benefits and risks of participation, the participant's rights to confidentiality, and the choice to participate. When children are involved in an evaluation, parents or guardians should sign an informed consent. Government-sponsored evaluations, as well as most professional associations, require informed consent.
Another factor that helps ensure an ethical evaluation is an approving authority. An approving authority, such as a special committee within or outside the organization, can review evaluation project proposals for fair treatment of the people and programs studied as well as for honorably collected information. For example, universities all have institutional review committees that must give approval for studies that use human subjects. Elementary and secondary school systems have committees to review studies that outside groups, such as park and recreation agencies, want to conduct within the schools. Similarly, hospitals have review committees that must give approval for studies done with patients.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Distinctiveness, memorability a must when naming rec programs
Naming a program focuses on developing “the hook”—something that gains attention. Your task is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest.
You may be tempted to think selecting a title or label for a program is easy and of no real significance. Yet stop and think about your own behavior when you glance through a recreation program brochure, skim an advertisement, or scan a Web site. Most people allocate only a few seconds when looking for program information. They are searching for things of interest to them. If a title catches their attention, they'll read more thoroughly (McCarville, 2002). So, your task in naming programs is to select titles that not only describe the program but also catch interest and attention (see the box on this page for an example).
Names represent dominant cues to customers. Thus, a program's name may be one of the most important pieces of information you can offer to prospective patrons. Names represent "the hook that hangs the brand on the product" (Ries & Trout, 1986, p. 71). Consider the name Exercise Center. What happens to your interest when the name is changed to Weight and Stress Control Center? The program is no longer about exerting physical energy; it is about getting body weight and stress under control. Now the "brand" is wellness rather than effort.
Another example is the leisure service agency that renamed an adult swim program for novices. The new title? Swimming for the Absolutely Terrified. The new choice was not only more descriptive but also more memorable. As a result, the program increased in popularity, and the agency has expanded the "absolutely terrified" naming theme to include programs on learning to ski, using computers and the Internet, and high school diploma exam preparation (McCarville, 2002).
From a communication perspective, naming a program focuses on developing "the hook"-something that gains attention. The most successful hooks focus on benefits (McCarville, 2002). The logic is simple: Programs that are named according to what the patrons want will attract more patron attention. Useful program names tell what the service will do and make it easy for patrons to visualize the benefits (Burton & Purvis, 1996).
Here is some specific advice on naming programs. Essentially, in order to be effective communication tools, names should pass four basic tests (Berry & Parasuraman, 1991). The first test is distinctiveness. The program name must clearly distinguish itself from other programs. The term aerobics class, for example, is descriptive but doesn't distinguish one fitness program from another. Instead, why not name this program Latin Explosion, Cardio Studio, or Fitness Jumpstart (Division of Recreational Sports, 2004)?
The second naming test is relevance. The program name needs to provide an image that is meaningful to the target constituency. The name must also be an honest representation of the program itself. For example, the titles Lifeguard Instructor Training and Water Safety Instructor Training provide a meaningful message about the differences in the two programs (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006). Memorability is the third test. Memorability refers to how easily the name is understood and remembered. This requires that the name be creatively interesting and to the point. Clutter and dullness are not memorable. For example, Owl Prowl, Classy Casting, and Rip Roaring Rapids are easy to remember because of the rhyming and alliteration (Bloomington Parks & Recreation, 2004).
For the fourth test, the name must be flexible enough to allow easy changes in program content or format over time. For instance, a program titled Yoga or Pilates Sampler enables programmers to alternate which fitness activity is offered from season to season without having to change the program's name (Division of Recreational Sports, 2006).
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.
Motivation strategies keep recreation program participants coming back
A good staff member should be able to keep program participants energized and motivated.
Another important function of staff is energizing participants, providing direction, and helping sustain recreational behavior (Russell, 2005). This is referred to as motivation. Motivation encompasses efforts to initiate, sustain, and stop behavior.
Because motivation is something within a person, we cannot describe the motivation of others directly. But research allows us to understand some principles of motivation. For example, positive reinforcement of a behavior increases the likelihood that the same behavior will be repeated, whereas negative reinforcement makes it more likely the same behavior will not be repeated.
There are two types of motivation: intrinsic and extrinsic. Intrinsic motivation means the behavior itself is positively reinforcing. Intrinsic motivation is doing something simply because it is interesting and personally meaningful. Ideally, all recreation participation is intrinsically motivated. Indeed, as Iso-Ahola (1982) explains, the participant initially chooses a recreation activity with the expectation that the activity will provide a feeling of freedom of choice and competence. On the other hand, extrinsic motivation comes from outside the behavior. The positive reinforcement is artificially established-a prize can be won, recognition can be awarded, weight can be lost, others can be impressed. Recreation program staff are able to manage participant motivation through both intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.
Increasing intrinsic motivation revolves around strategies to increase participants' perceptions of success. Here are some suggestions (Weinberg & Gould, 1995; Bateman & Snell, 2002; Russell, 2005):
- Match skill levels of participants with the challenges required in the activity (e.g., use higher-classified white-water rivers for experienced boaters); see the box on page 163.
- Use verbal and nonverbal praise; this is especially important for participants who receive little recognition otherwise.
- Involve participants in decision making; people perceive they have greater competency when they make their own decisions, which in turn increases intrinsic motivation.
- Share the power with participants; confidence in one's worth is profoundly motivating.
- Be sure participants are ready to participate in the program (i.e., they have the knowledge and skills to enjoy a particular activity).
- Enhance the appropriateness of physical properties of the program setting (e.g., lower the lighting, turn up the music volume, and watch them dance!).
- Develop programs that include a planned progression. Some common examples are merit badges in scouting; A and B teams in sports; first, second, and third seats in an orchestra; and white, brown, and black belts in karate.
Using extrinsic motivation to guide recreation program interest and behavior is also common, especially when intrinsic motivation is not present. Here is a sampling of suggestions (Russell, 2005) for extrinsically motivating participation in recreation programs:
- Emphasize the status of the activity. Provide membership cards, mugs, uniforms, patches, T-shirts, well-maintained equipment, and other status symbols.
- Carefully employ well-planned and well-controlled competition. Although it runs the risk of going too far and becoming demotivating, competition can be used as an interest builder (see "How to Keep Competition's Motivational Potential" on this page).
- Capitalize on people's desire to be part of a group. Peer pressure is a motivator in much the same way as announcing, "Only a few tickets left."
- Offer prizes and rewards directly associated with the activity; blue ribbons, door prizes, gold stars, free gifts, coupons, and certificates are the most common.
In preparing to implement a recreation program, consider the role of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation techniques. If they would help ensure the safety and enjoyment of the experience, try to acquire staff with these abilities or this training.
This is an excerpt from Leisure Program Planning and Delivery.