Diffusion Associates Information

Effective practices often fail to spread to those in need. When spread does occur, implementation may not be sustained or local adaptation renders the innovation ineffective. We work with program innovators and their sponsors to study how best to implement and scale innovations. We focus on the characteristics of the innovation, the organizational context, and the implementation process to identify which adaptations are helpful and which are not and recommend how to successfully cross the research-to-practice-to-scale chasm. Diffusion Associates works closely with clients to assess how programs are implemented and to what effect. We conduct formative evaluation to improve the likelihood of adoption, monitor implementation to identify opportunities for sustained use and spread, assess the effectiveness of promising practices, and focus on how a best practice spreads to new problems and populations. Our work is theoretically based, practice focused, and highly customized. R. Sam Larson (Ph.D., Michigan State University) is the President of Diffusion Associates (and prior to that Applied Research). Sam builds collaborative teams drawing on the strengths of researchers and practitioners from across the country. She has led and collaborated on numerous evaluations of educational and social service programs. At present, her primary areas of inquiry include the analysis of innovation implementation, collaboration strategies used to scale-up social innovations, and adult and continuing education. Sam is also the director of River Runs North which organizes pro bono evaluation and communication consulting for nonprofits serving rural areas in Michigan. James W. Dearing (Ph.D., University of Southern California) is the Brandt Endowed Professor in the Department of Communication at Michigan State University and a Senior Consultant with Diffusion Associates. He has been Senior Scientist with Kaiser Permanente and on the faculties of several universities. Dearing studies the strategic use of diffusion of innovation ...