FAQ Listing

No. A listing on CrimeSolutions does not constitute an endorsement of particular programs or practices. Furthermore, it is not intended to replace or supersede informed judgment or innovation. CrimeSolutions recognizes that rigorous evaluation evidence is one of several factors to consider in justice programming, policy, and funding decisions. OJP also recognizes the importance of encouraging and supporting innovative approaches that may not yet have extensive evidence of effectiveness. 

CrimeSolutions classifies programs  and practices in three levels: “Effective,” “Promising” and “Ineffective” based on the strength of the evaluation research that indicates a program or practice achieves its goals (i.e., its justice-related outcomes).

Evidence Ratings

Evidence Rating	One-Study Icon	Multiple-Study Icon	Description
Effective			Program is likely to result in the intended outcomes. An Effective outcome indicates there is strong evidence that implementing the program, or a program encompassed by the practice, will achieve the intended outcome.
Promising			Program may result in the intended outcomes. A Promising outcome indicates there is some evidence that implementing the program, or a program encompassed by the practice, will achieve the intended outcome.
Ineffective			Programs has strong evidence that the program did not have the intended effects when trying to achieve justice-related outcomes. A Ineffective outcome indicates there is strong evidence that implementing the program, or a program encompassed by the practice, will not achieve the intended outcome.
Negative Effects			Programs or practices have strong evidence that the program had harmful effects when trying to achieve justice-related outcomes. A Negative Effects outcome indicates there is strong evidence that implementing the program, or a program encompassed by the practice, will achieve have harful effects.

A single-study icon is used to identify programs that have been evaluated with a single sample. A program with multiple publications listed in the evidence base may receive a single-study icon because:

• The publications resulted from a study based on a single sample.
• the studies that comprised the program’s evidence base did not demonstrate effects in a consistent direction.

A multiple studies icon is used to represent a greater extent of evidence supporting the evidence rating. The icon depicts programs that have more than one study in the evidence base demonstrating effects in a consistent direction.

Read more about evidence ratings at About CrimeSolutions.

A Program is a specified set of activities combined according to precise guidance in order to achieve a specific purpose. Program profiles on CrimeSolutions tell us whether a specific program was found to achieve its goals when it was carefully evaluated. The results apply to the exact set of activities and procedures used for that one program as it was implemented at the time of evaluation. Thus the program profile tells us that a program is likely to produce the observed result if implemented in exactly the same way.

A Practice is a general category of programs, strategies, or procedures that share similar characteristics with regard to the matters they address and how they do it. Practice profiles tell us about the average results from multiple evaluations of similar programs, strategies, or procedures. The programs, strategies, or procedures within a practice are similar because they share certain defining characteristics that are described for each practice profile on CrimeSolutions. Thus, practice profiles tell us the most typical results across multiple evaluations.

See Comparing Programs and Practices.

CrimeSolutions includes Ineffective and Negative Effects programs and practices to inform policy makers and practitioners about the current status of available evaluation evidence before planning or implementing similar efforts.

For Ineffective programs and practices, there is strong evidence that the intervention did not have the intended effects when trying to achieve justice-related outcomes. 

For Negative Effects programs and practices, there is strong evidence that the intervention had harmful effects when trying to achieve justice-related outcomes. 

While programs and practices rated Ineffective may have had some positive effects, the overall rating is based on the preponderance of evidence.

Read more about Program Review and Rating from Start to Finish.

You may notice that a practice's outcome ratings may not be the same as the programs that are encompassed by that practice and vice versa. For example, some practices have outcomes that are rated Effective but programs listed in the Related Programs section are rated Promising or Ineffective.

This can happen because practice ratings reflect an assessment of the average effectiveness of a specific characteristic(s) common across programs, strategies, or procedures. Practice ratings do not take into account variations in implementation or other program-specific factors. If such variations impact the effectiveness of the essential practice characteristic(s), practice and program ratings may diverge as the program-specific effectiveness may differ from the average effectiveness across multiple programs.

 A program with multiple publications listed in the evidence base may receive a single-study icon because:

• The publications resulted from a study based on a single sample.
• the studies that comprised the program’s evidence base did not demonstrate effects in a consistent direction.

Intervention materials, including Web sites, may state that a program or practice has been reviewed and posted on CrimeSolutions. After a profile has been posted on CrimeSolutions, interested parties may Submit Feedback to request the CrimeSolutions logo graphic. The logo may be used as a link to CrimeSolutions or in the materials related to the program or practice. However, the posting of a program summary on CrimeSolutions does not constitute an endorsement, promotion, or approval of the intervention by CrimeSolutions or NIJ. 

CrimeSolutions recommends the following citation format for program/practice profiles and summaries:

Office of Justice Programs, National Institute of Justice. Name of program or practice. Retrieved [month, date, year profile was accessed], from CrimeSolutions, [URL of summary].

Yes! We are very interested in receiving success stories related to the use of CrimeSolutions program profiles, practice profiles, or other content from the site. Using our Submit Feedback form, please provide us with the content you found useful (for example, a specific program profile), how it was used, what you found useful or beneficial about the information, and what the successful outcome was related to your use of the content. The information you provide will be shared with personnel at NIJ. Upon review of your submission, OJP personnel may reach out to you directly to gather further information and feedback about your experience.

No. However, we do provide contact information for the program developer, program director, training/technical assistance provider, and evaluator when available.

Please use the following text: This program [or practice] received the rating of ['Effective' or 'Promising'] by CrimeSolutions. For more information, visit [URL of CrimeSolutions program or practice profile].