Logic model

A logic model (also known as a logical framework, theory of change, or program matrix) is a tool used by funders, managers, and evaluators of programs to evaluate the effectiveness of a program. They can also be used during planning and implementation. Logic models are usually a graphical depiction of the logical relationships between the resources, activities, outputs and outcomes of a program. While there are many ways in which logic models can be presented, the underlying purpose of constructing a logic model is to assess the "if-then" (causal) relationships between the elements of the program.

In its simplest form, a logic model has four components:

Following the early development of the logic model in the 1970s by Carol Weiss, Joseph Wholey and others, many refinements and variations have been added to the basic concept. Many versions of logic models set out a series of outcomes/impacts, explaining in more detail the logic of how an intervention contributes to intended or observed results. This will often include distinguishing between short-term, medium-term and long-term results, and between direct and indirect results.

Some logic models also include assumptions, which are beliefs the prospective grantees have about the program, the people involved, and the context and the way the prospective grantees think the program will work, and external factors, consisting of the environment in which the program exists, including a variety of external factors that interact with and influence the program action.

University Cooperative Extension Programs in the US have developed a more elaborate logic model, called the Program Action Logic Model, which includes six steps:

In front of Inputs, there is a description of a Situation and Priorities. These are the considerations that determine what Inputs will be needed.

The University of Wisconsin Extension offers a series of guidance documents on the use of logic models. There is also an extensive bibliography of work on this program logic model.

By describing work in this way, managers have an easier way to define the work and measure it. Performance measures can be drawn from any of the steps. One of the key insights of the logic model is the importance of measuring final outcomes or results, because it is quite possible to waste time and money (inputs), "spin the wheels" on work activities, or produce outputs without achieving desired outcomes. It is these outcomes (impacts, long-term results) that are the only justification for doing the work in the first place. For commercial organizations, outcomes relate to profit. For not-for-profit or governmental organizations, outcomes relate to successful achievement of mission or program goals.

...
Wikipedia