Family Group Decision Making. Year 2 Annual Evaluation Report.

Source: (2002) Tuscon, AZ: LeCroy & Milligan Associates, Inc.

This is the second evaluation report on the Family Group Decision Making Program in Arizona. Family group decision making is a model and strategy for dealing with youth in trouble and their families. First developed in New Zealand in 1989 as part of child welfare reform, it concentrates on family strengths and capacity for change rather than on problems and deficits. This particular Family Group Decision Making Program, oriented primarily toward child welfare purposes rather than juvenile justice per se, is a relatively new effort by the Arizona Department of Economic Security (DES). The aim of the program is to encourage and prepare families to develop and implement their own placement plans to ensure child safety. This second phase of the evaluation – covering the period from August 2001 through August 2002 – focuses on the implementation of the program throughout the state of Arizona. The evaluation report details the program’s background, the evaluation purpose and design, evaluation of the implementation of the program, evaluation of the program’s outcomes, and conclusions and recommendations. A number of appendices provide valuable materials and statistics on the program itself, and tools used in the research.