In a logic model, how do 'outputs' differ from 'outcomes'?

• A. Outputs are the long-term changes; outcomes are the program activities.
• B. Outputs are the budgets; outcomes are the schedules.
• C. Outputs are the immediate products of activities; outcomes are the changes that result.
• D. Outputs are the inputs; outcomes are the volunteer numbers.

Answer: (C)

In a logic model, the key distinction is between what you produce and what you cause to change. Outputs are the immediate products of activities—things you can count or deliver, such as workshops held, sessions delivered, or materials distributed. They show that the activity occurred. Outcomes are the changes that result from those activities—shifts in knowledge, skills, behaviors, conditions, or status among participants or within the system, observed after the activities.

So the best phrasing aligns with that idea: outputs are the immediate products of activities, while outcomes are the changes that result. For example, in a job-training program, the number of training hours completed is an output, whereas the resulting increase in job placements or earnings is an outcome.

The other options mix up these ideas: budgets or schedules are planning elements rather than the actual products of activities; outputs are not inputs; and long-term changes are outcomes, not outputs.