Explain what an outcome is and some key differences in the term.

What will be an ideal response?

An outcome is the state of the target population or the social conditions with which a program intervenes on a characteristic or behavior the program might potentially affect.
Outcome level is the status of an outcome at some point in time (e.g., the amount of smoking among teenagers).
Outcome change is the difference between outcome levels from one point in time to another (e.g., increase in the amount of smoking from the beginning to the end of the school year).
Program effect is the difference between the outcome level for those exposed to the program and the outcome level they would have had if they had not been exposed to the program. It is the change in the outcome experienced by program participants, which can be attributed directly and uniquely to the effects of the program as opposed to the influence of other factors.