Community Services Needs Assessment: An Innovative Approach

Abstract

Periodic human services needs assessment of a community is an integral part of decision-making processes in nonprofit, philanthropic agencies and governmental units. This paper describes an innovative approach to such assessment surveys by applying a service quality marketing approach to what was previously considered a sociological discipline. Results of a countywide telephone survey provide a rich two-dimensional view of respondent rankings of 32 human service needs. Implications of and uses for such data by nonprofit and governmental organizations are discussed.