Theory of Change
Theory of Change (sometimes also known as Change Theory) is a framework that is developed in order to help you think through what social change you want to affect through your program and why. It is your roadmap for change.
A theory of change identifies:
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What kind of impact you want to have
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What types of impact
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Who you will impact
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How you plan to achieve or enact this change
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How you will know if you were successful
Thinking through your theory of change will help guide how you organize different aspects of your program and inform your actions.
There are many books and seminars on theory of change and we encourage you to consult our Online Resource Centre for more information.
Thinking It Through
Consider the following questions when thinking through your Theory of Change:
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What impact will the program have on girls?
For example, can it increase self-confidence, skill building, knowledge building, and access to resources and support?
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What impact will the program have on community building, violence prevention, health promotion, etc?
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In what ways will the program support girls to better connect with one another?
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In what ways will the program help girls connect with members of their local, national, and international communities?
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In what ways will the program help girls connect to issues affecting these communities?
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What kinds of awareness or abilities do girls want or need to gain from a girls’ program?
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What style of leadership do you want to follow in the program?
Breakin’ It Down: Theory of Change
To help you to visualize your Theory of Change, we have created a template. To support and guide the process, we have broken down this template by explaining in more detail each aspect that you will need to develop.
For the Theory of Change Template see Appendix 1.
Vision Statement
The vision statement is a short description of the world you want to create through your program. The vision should be described in “big picture” terms. It is a high-level description of the long-term effects you hope to create through your program.
For example, the Girls Action vision statement is:
To build a movement of active, engaged young women across Canada, we envision the possibility of a transformed movement of young women and women engaged in creating social, economic and political justice in a world of free of violence, a world of peace.
State the Need
Chances are if you are developing a program it is because you and the people you wish to work with have identified a need. Clearly outlining the need for your program justifies your vision statement, provides the foundation for the assumptions that you are basing your work on, and informs your approach and method for creating change. Often the need will be backed up by research, examples, or testimonials. The need that you outline here should also be reflected in the outcomes section.
For example, the need that Girls Action identified when creating its’ programs is that girls in Canada experience a continuum of violence.
Assumptions or Beliefs
Based on the need and your vision statement, you will have assumptions about the best ways in which to create change. These are educated and thought through premises for how you think change will be supported. For example at Girls Action we assume that efforts to transform girls’ lives must be grounded in their lived experiences, make links to their communities and move towards action.
Limitations or Challenges to Your Work
Depending on your situation or context, you may decide to add a short description of the limitations or challenges to your work.
For example, unstable or short-term funding makes social change work difficult; youth population in constant flux makes it challenging to identify their needs; or difficulty influencing government policies on women’s issues makes it challenging to affect social change.
Approach or Theoretical Framework(s)
The approach or theoretical framework is the tried and tested position or theory that will support your assumptions and inform your methods or objectives. Your approach could simply be that you believe in using creative processes, girl-friendly spaces, or participatory dialogue.
For example, at Girls Action, we have five foundational principles that we base our work on: Popular Education, Integrated Feminist Analysis, Critically-Asset Based, Transformational Change, and Organic.
Methods or Objectives
Methods or objectives are what you are going to do in order to respond to the need. Your methods, or “how you do it” is informed by your approach. In essence, this is an overview of your program objectives.
For example, one of our objectives at Girls Action is to promote self-advocacy, build physical, mental, and emotional health, develop critical-thinking skills, raise awareness of issues related to poverty, violence against women, health, racism, sexual orientation and identity, and the environment.
Outcomes or Changes
It is equally useful to think through the effects of the actions that your program will take. Girls’ programs can have a wide range of outcomes and benefits for the girls and young women involved. Outcomes are considered in short, medium and long-term horizons.
For example, at Girls Action we have learned that in the short to medium term (1–3 years), girls programs can:
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Decrease isolation: When young women get together in a safe space and share their experiences and challenges, they often realize for the first time they are not alone.
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Open doors: Support young women to better understand their experiences, access to resources, learn from others’ experience
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Increase awareness: Young women gain knowledge and strategies for coping and creating positive social change.
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Increase opportunity: Encourage girls to engage in social, economic, and political spheres of life through such things as programming, community-led workshops, and volunteer participation.
Over the longer term (5–10 year horizon), Girls Action programs forge connections between the lived experiences of girls and young women and broader societal and systemic issues. Longer-term outcomes can:
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Reduce discriminatory barriers that young women face by creating opportunities that might not have otherwise been there.
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Increase and introduce linkages to community resources thus fostering community connection and awareness.
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Increase engagement in community action strategies for social change.
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Improve understanding around how young women can effect and mobilize for creating change on multiple levels.
The chart below illustrates our Theory of Change and shows how our beliefs at Girls Action can be translated into change at local and national levels, in order to impact broad transformational change.
Theory of Transformational Change |
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This project has a long-term horizon. As we build a movement of active, engaged young women across Canada, we envision the possibility of a transformed movement of young women and women engaged in creating social, economic, and political justice in a world of free of violence, a world of peace. |
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State the Need |
Assumptions |
Approach or Theoretical Framework |
Methods or Objectives |
Outcomes |
Long-Term Impact |
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Starting with girls’ lived realities… |
We believe… |
Based on these beliefs, we use a participatory approach… |
We use this approach at local and national levels… |
This leads to changes for young women… |
Resulting in changes at the community level and a movement towards social justice |
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Girls in Canada experience a continuum of violence ranging “from verbal, physical and psychological abuse, to sexual violence, homophobia, racism, classism, and poverty.i Girls Action mobilizes action around the issue of violence against girls and young women. Recognizing that violence in girls’ lives is complex and multidimensional; we stress the importance of addressing this issue holistically. This includes violence done to the self (self-harm, substance abuse, anorexia, etc.), relational violence (racism, bullying, physical, verbal or sexual aggression, etc.), and systemic violence (racism, poverty, and other social injustices).ii
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Efforts to transform girls’ lives must: • Be grounded in their lived experiences • Make links to their communities • Move towards action Girls and young women are uniquely positioned to lead change. Learning networks can increase social impact and effectiveness of grassroots work. Leaders across sectors must work collaboratively and in solidarity to create critical educational environments for girls that are effective in creating social change.
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Girls Action participates in a learning movement,iii encouraging girls to learn about their world in the process of changing it. This is done in gender specific spaces and with a popular education approach adapted to girls and young women. 1. Gender Specific We emphasize gender-specific spaces that recognize that the life experiences of girls and young women occur in multiple and compounding spheres. 2. Popular Education Popular education is a model that begins with a personal experience and moves towards collective action. Unlike traditional hierarchal education, where experts hold and disseminate knowledge, this model is grounded in the belief that everyone is an expert. It affirms that learning is not a top-down process. For Girls Action, keeping the focus on girls’ experiences in our programs allows girls to recognize that they are important as individuals and that together, they can have an impact on their reality. We favour grassroots and popular education approaches that are designed to recognize girls’ knowledge. We invite girls to be experts in their own lives. This validates girls’ experiential knowledge and actively engages and empowers individuals to move towards collective change. 3. Integrated Feminist Analysis We also recognize that in order to build support networks and community among girls, we must acknowledge the multiple and intersecting nature of these diverse identities. We do this by incorporating and working from an integrated feminist analysis framework. We focus on understanding structures of power and systemic issues and how these factors interact with girls’ lives. This framework recognizes that policies and practices have varying impacts on different groups of girls’ according to the power or lack of power they experience in their lives. By recognizing and addressing how power affects girls in their different social locations and wide-ranging histories, Girls Action strives to empower girls in all their diversity and to build communities to encourage girls to mobilize together for transformational change. 4. Transformational Change Social justice requires change on individual, community, and systemic levels. We support girls to take action in their own lives, in their own communities, and in their own initiatives – to influence policy, the educational system, laws, and so on. 5. Critically Asset-Based This asset-based approach embraces social, political, and economic reflection and critical perspective, while acknowledging that girls face certain structural barriers, including institutionalized racism, poverty, homophobia, ablism, and other forms of structural and personal violence. 6. Organic An ongoing process of learning, reflecting, researching, acting, and evaluating informs our work on organizational and programming levels. We are committed to remaining adaptable and relevant to the changing realities of girls' and young women's lives. |
Locally Through girls programs, we promote self-advocacy; build physical, mental, and emotional health; develop critical-thinking skills; raise awareness of issues related to poverty, violence against women, health, racism, sexual orientation and identity, and the environment. Our programs also build leadership skills and capacity; increase educational opportunities for girls to overcome systemic barriers in their lives; and illustrate and make concrete links between young women and the community. We ensure program accessibility through outreach strategies in schools, communities, and other organizations. We draw energy and commitment to projects through voluntary participation from members in the community
Nationally We promote and support gender-specific programs in communities across the country; generate and facilitate a strong network of young women and grassroots leaders successful in their efforts to inform policy development and impact social change; and facilitate intergenerational dialogue and dialogues across difference. We also provide training, resources, peer learning, skills and knowledge exchange, and opportunities to girls programs across Canada. Finally, we build bridges between sectors and sub-sectors including grassroots organizations, academics, and policy makers in order to provide visibility and legitimacy to issues facing girls and young women. |
Our activities: • Decrease isolation • Promote self advocacy • Increase awareness, knowledge, and critical-thinking skills • Reduce discriminatory barriers and violence • Foster community connections and awareness • Encourage girls and young women to be leaders and agents of change in their communities
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Our activities: • Increase individual and community commitment to creating social justice • Contribute to a movement towards social justice and peace
We recognize the limitations of our work and rely on other grassroots initiatives, NGOs, social movements, and government policies and practices to help advance our vision.
These outcomes are supported by research and Girls Action evaluations.
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i Yasmin Jiwani, The Girl Child: Having to ‘Fit,’ The FREDA Centre for Research on Violence against Women and Children (October 1998): http://www.vancouver.sfu.ca/freda/articles/fit.htm [consulted September 4, 2009].
ii Yasmin Jiwani and Helene Berman, In the Best Interests of the Girl Child, Phase ll Report (Ottawa: Status of Women Canada and Alliance of Five Research Centres on Violence, 2002), p. 20: www.crvawc.ca/documents/Girl_Child_E.pdf [consulted September 4, 2009].
iii The idea of a “learning movement” is articulated by Boughton and cited in G. Foley, “Clearing the theoretical ground: Elements in a theory of popular education,” International Review of Education 44, 2–3 (1998), pp. 139–153.
