We address the challenges of creating evaluation protocols that serve interests of both researchers and field faculty. WSU Extension used true and retrospective forms of pretest in evaluations of 100 adults attending the Strengthening Families Program for Parents and Youth 10-14 Years. We hypothesized that both forms of pretest would show positive change to posttest and that "Desirable" item types would show greater change. Both forms of the test indicated significant change in intervention-related behaviors, with greater change on retrospective tests and socially desirable items. We recommend using both a true pre-test and retrospective pre-test to satisfy researchers and practitioners.
Betz et al. (Sat,) studied this question.