This article is concerned with two evaluations of community alcohol action programmes in New Zealand. The first programme was a demonstration programme using a quasi-experimental design to examine the effect of a media campaign and alcohol community organisers in provincial New Zealand cities for a two-year period in the early 1980s. The second was a project run in one city for three months in 1987, consisting of enforcement of drunk -driving laws and community coordination. This article sets out a summary of the programmes; distinguishes between evaluation of demonstration programmes versus other potentially less research-driven programmes; highlights the importance of an individual assessment of what evaluation is appropriate for any such programme; and stresses using a range of appropriate formative, process and outcome evaluation methods right across the lifecycle of a programme.
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