Measuring effectiveness

Researchers and prevention-workers have attempted to assess the effectiveness of interventions by using a number of measures:

  • changes in HIV incidence in a randomised controlled trial
  • changes in HIV incidence or prevalence in a cohort or a population
  • changes in reports of sexually transmitted infections
  • changes in self-reported behaviour amongst a cohort or sample
  • changes in uptake of condoms or injecting equipment
  • changes in knowledge and attitudes
  • numbers of people reached
  • changes in addiction and treatment patterns.

This section looks at the value of these measurements, while the following section will summarise what is known about effective interventions. This list of measurements covers those used in process evaluations and those used in outcome evaluations.

This content was checked for accuracy at the time it was written. It may have been superseded by more recent developments. NAM recommends checking whether this is the most current information when making decisions that may affect your health.