This longitudinal research compares the Program Planning Model (PPM) with a conventional (non-PPM) planning model in the context of creating 14 new child care programs in local Texas communities. The programs planned according to the PPM are found to have more efficient services and greater community acceptance during their first year of implementation than the programs that were developed with the conventional planning process. Due to the absence of random assignments, it is not demonstrated that these results are due to planning processes alone. However, evidence is presented that suggests the PPM projects outperformed the non-PPM projects because implementation success correlates with five key dimensions of planning behavior. Implementation success increases with: (1) participation of citizens, experts, and community interest groups; (2) involvement of a policy board representing partisan interests; (3) greater and more equal distribution of planning team effort; (4) process consultation in early planning phases; and (5) fewer deviations from the PPM procedural model in allphases of planning. The implications of this research for theory and practice will be discussed in a companion Part II of this article.
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