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II. Framework and Evidence Base for

the Performance Checklists

his section of the monograph includes two interrelated chapters. Chapter 2 includes a description of the procedures
Tthat were used to develop evidence-informed performance checklists, and Chapter 3 includes a description of the
evidence that was used for identifying or developing performance checklist indicators.
A systematic approach was used to develop early childhood performance checklists based on a framework pro-
posed by Babbie (2009) for operationalizing the indicators and key characteristics of constructs of interest, such as a
particular kind of early childhood intervention practice. The framework includes three interrelated elements: Concep-
tualization (e.g., specifying what we mean when we describe or define an intervention practice), operationalization
(e.g., specifying the key characteristics of a practice), and measurement (e.g., procedures for knowing if the key char-
acteristics were used as intended). The procedures for doing so are described in Chapter 3 and elsewhere (e.g., Dunst,
Trivette, & Raab, 2015).
The identification or development of the key characteristics of different performance checklist indicators (i.e.,
key characteristics) was based on the evidence described in Chapter 3 and included in Appendix A. The evidence base
for 26 early childhood intervention performance checklists was findings from more than 200 research syntheses of
the different kinds of early childhood practices described in Chapter 3 as well as in other sources (Dunst, 2010, 2016;
Trivette & Dunst, 2013). As noted in that chapter, checklist indicators were considered evidence-informed when and
only when research indicated that key practice characteristics were empirically related to the expected outcomes of the
practice.
The two chapters, taken together, illustrate one approach to knowledge harvesting and management (Asrar-ul-Haq
& Anwar, 2016; Rehman, 2016), as well as how research knowledge was used for knowledge packaging, sharing, and
dissemination (Huysman & de Wit, 2002; Janus, 2016) specifically to inform adoption and use of evidence-informed
early childhood intervention practices. Both the procedures for developing performance checklists, and the sources of
evidence for identifying or developing checklist indicators, are based on the less-is-more principle (Halpern & Hakel,
2002, 2003). The fewer the number of checklist indicators, the higher the likelihood that the practices will be used as
intended (Gawande, 2009).

References

Asrar-ul-Haq, M., & Anwar, S. (2016). A systematic review of knowledge management and knowledge sharing:
Trends, issues, and challenges. Cogent Business & Management, 3. Retrieved from https://www.cogentoa.com/
article/10.1080/23311975.2015.1127744.pdf doi:10.1080/23311975.2015.1127744
Babbie, E. R. (2009). The practice of social research (12th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Dunst, C. J. (2010). Research syntheses of early childhood intervention practices: What counts as evidence?. Paper
presented at the Presentation made at the Victorian Chapter of the Early Childhood Intervention Australia Asso-
ciation Seminar on Evidence-Based Practices, Melbourne, Australia. Retrieved from http://puckett.org/presenta-
tions/ResearchSynth_8_2010.pdf
Dunst, C. J. (2016). Role of research syntheses for identifying evidence-based early childhood intervention practices.
In B. Reichow, B. A. Boyd, E. E. Barton, & S. L. Odom (Eds.), Handbook of early childhood special education
(pp. 541-563). Switzerland: Springer International.
Dunst, C. J., Trivette, C. M., & Raab, M. (2015). Utility of implementation and intervention performance checklists for
conducting research in early childhood education. In O. N. Saracho (Ed.), Handbook of research methods in early
childhood education: Vol. 1. Research methodologies (pp. 247-276). Charlotte, NC: Information Age Publishing.
Gawande, A. (2009). The checklist manifesto: How to get things right. New York: Metropolitan Books.
Halpern, D. F., & Hakel, M. D. (2002). Applying the science of learning to university teaching and beyond. San Fran-
cisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

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