The five whys method: A tool for developing program definitions in collaboration with children
Participatory action research with young people (yPAR) involves youth and adults in a collaborative process of research, reflection, analysis and action. An important part of the research cycle is enabling youth participants to identify a problem definition. This article draws upon a yPAR project to demonstrate how the Five Whys method for reflecting on lived experience facilitated the development of problem definitions in line with second order change. The Five Whys method, when used within a participatory framework, offers both a context and a structure for young people to critically examine social problems and to seek out root causes. Kohfeldt,…
Practical steps to community engaged research: From inputs to outcomes
This article, written by two professors in the UNC Chapel Hill School of Medicine, is a practical guide to conducting community engaged research (CEnR). The authors describe the defining elements of CEnR and necessary considerations in CEnR—(1) place (as research moves beyond the university) (2) time (and the need for long-term relationships), (3) commitment to community-centered research, and (4) weighing risk, benefit and outcomes from various perspectives. They then discuss practical steps for engaging in CEnR. Finally, the article explains how the outcomes of CeNR make it an effective form of research for improving community health. Isler, M. R., &…
Patterns of protective factors in an intervention for the prevention of suicide and alcohol abuse with Yup’ik Alaska native youth
When a CBPR intervention is implemented across multiple communities, the intervention can take different forms in each community. This has made it difficult to compare a CBPR intervention across settings. In response to this challenge, this study develops a method for quantifying intervention exposure in CBPR interventions that differ in their forms across communities. The method involves standardizing interventions by the functions an intervention serves (protective factors promoted) instead of their forms or components (specific activities). Henry, D., Allen, J., Fok, C.C.T., Rasmus, S., Charles, B., & People Awakening Team (2012). Patterns of protective factors in an intervention for the…
Roadmap for a participatory research-practice partnership to implement evidence
In this paper, two Nursing professors describe their experience with using research to facilitate the integration of evidence into clinical practice at the point-of-care. Through their research, the professors developed the Queen’s University Research Roadmap for Knowledge Implementation (QuRKI), which they describe here. QuRKI serves as a guide for researchers in the formation of a strategic alliance with the practice community for undertaking evidence-informed reorganization of care. Harrison, M. B., & Graham, I. D. (2012). Roadmap for a participatory research-practice partnership to implement evidence. Worldviews on Evidence-Based Nursing, 9(4), 210-220. Full Text.
Evaluating public and community health programs
This book presents a participatory model for the evaluation of community health programs and policy interventions. It is a guide for public health and community health students, practitioners, and faculty to develop community-validated evaluation programs. Discussed are two evaluation frameworks that are most commonly used in public and community heath: the Donaldson three-step program theory-driven evaluation approach and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s six-step Framework for Program Evaluation in Public Health. Methods in community assessment, planning, program design, quantitative and qualitative data collection, data analysis, and dissemination of findings are outlined as a step-by-step process to program evaluation….
Partnering to harmonize IRBs for community-engaged research to reduce health disparities
Research projects on health disparities frequently involve multiple communities and academic institution, thus requiring review by many institutional review boards (IRBs). Review by multiple IRBs is problematic and redundant, especially in participatory projects. This article defines IRB harmonization, and discusses how the Research Centers in Minority Institutions (RCMI) Translational Research Network (RTRN) is working to create a community-partnered approach to streamlining IRB review across the network’s 18 grantee institutions. Hammatt, Z.H., Nishitani, J., Heslin, K.C., Perry, M.T., Szetela, C., Jones, L….Norris, K.C. (2011). Partnering to harmonize IRBs for community-engaged research to reduce health disparities. Journal of Health Care for the…
Community-based participatory research and the challenges of qualitative analysis enacted by lay, nurse, and academic researchers
This article addresses the challenges with conducting qualitative analysis during CBPR projects, often caused by the wide range of academic preparation within the research team. The authors describe the process of conducting qualitative analysis of data on community perceptions of public maternity care in the Dominican Republic in a cross-cultural, CBPR study. The data analysis was conducted through experiential and conversational learning, which resulted in study findings that incorporated the thinking and speaking of all research team members—both community and academic. Foster, J. W., Chiang, F., Burgos, R. I., Cáceres, R. E., Tejada, C. M., Almonte, A. T., Noboa, F.,…Heath,…
‘Playing with fire and getting burned’: The case of the Naive action researcher
This article is a case-based reflection on the dilemmas surrounding community-based research and how it can impact upon the experiences of both the community and the researchers facilitating the project. Reflections are contextualized within discussions from various academic orientations within the psychological and social science literature. Estacio, E. V. (2012). ‘Playing with fire and getting burned’: The case of the Naïve action researcher. Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology, 22(5), 439-451. Full Text.
A community-engaged approach to select geopraphic areas for interventions to reduce health disparities
How should researchers select the geographic locations of interventions to reduce health disparities? This paper presents the lessons learned from community-engaged selection process, in which a community-academic partnership of over 20 organizations worked to generate a 5-stage process to select an area for diabetes prevention and control programs. In conclusion, the authors suggest that using a participatory approach can be an effective way to define geographic areas for research and intervention. Cromley, E., Kleinman, L.C., Ramos, M.A., Arniella, G. , Viswanathan, M.G., & Hrowitz, C.R. (2011). A community-engaged approach to select geographic areas for interventions to reduce health disparities. Progress…
Cross-cultural research: Challenge and competence
Increasing globalization, population diversity, and health disparities among non-dominant cultures necessitate cross-cultural research. This article presents approaches to dealing with the challenges of cross-cultural research, which an emphasis on how a CBPR approach can be used to conduct culturally competent research. Clark, M. J. (2012). Cross-cultural research: Challenge and competence. International Journal of Nursing Practice, 18(Supplement 2), 28-37. Full Text.
Fieldwork challenges: Lessons learned from a north-south public health research partnership
This paper describes the lessons learned from an international research partnership between two northern universities, one southern university, and a southern faith-based organization. The research project evaluated a school-based HIV prevention intervention with South African adolescents, and through this process seven fieldwork-related challenges were revealed. Lessons learned from these challenges—along with how they prepared for each one, what happened on the ground, and possible unintended consequences—are described in detail. Casale, M.A.J., Flicker, S., & Nixon, S.A. (2011). Fieldwork challenges: Lessons learned from a north-south public health research partnership. Health Promotion Practice, 12(5), 734-735. Full Text.
Systems thinking tools as applied to community-based participatory research: A case study
The authors propose that CBPR can benefit from a systems science framework to represent the complex and dynamic characteristics of a community and identify intervention points and potential “tipping points”. Systems thinking tools can assist all CBPR stakeholders in visualizing how community factors are interrelated, and by potentially identifying the most salient intervention points. BeLue, R., Carmack, C., Myers, K. R., Weinreb-Welch, L., & Lengerich, E. J. (2012). Systems thinking tools as applied to community-based participatory research: A case study. Health Education and Behavior, 39(6), 745-751. Full Text.
Using the Critical Incident Technique in community-based participatory research: A case study
This paper analyzes the effectiveness of a qualitative research method, the Critical Incident Technique (CIT), used in a CBPR project in Mendocino and Humboldt counties of California. Did the CIT method facilitate or impede the engagement of the community in the research process? The authors describe how the CIT method was used in a CBPR research project involving an academic researcher and two community-based cancer support centers, reporting that the CIT method effectively facilitated community engagement in the research process. Belkora, J., Stupar, L., & O’Donnell, S. (2011). Using the Critical Incident Technique in community-based participatory research: A case study….
Principles of community engagement
This “primer” provides public health professionals, health care providers, researchers, and community-based leaders and organizations with both a science base and practical guidance for engaging partners in projects that may affect them. The principles of engagement can be used by people in a range of roles, from the program funder who needs to know how to support community engagement to the researcher or community leader who needs hands-on, practical information on how to mobilize the members of a community to partner in research initiatives. In addition, it provides tools for those who are leading efforts to improve population health through…
Identifying the Role of Community Partnerships in Creating Change to Support Active Living
Active Living by Design (ALbD) partnerships were established in 25 communities across the U.S. to change environments and policies and support complementary programs to increase physical activity. This study analyzed these ALbD partnerships to determine the structural and functional factors that contributed to their success. This paper presents the factors that were identified as contributing to partnerships’ success.Baker, E., Wilkerson, R., & Brennan, L. K. (2012). Identifying the role of community partnerships in creating change to support active living. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 43(5, Supplement 4), S290-S299. Full Text.
A network assessment of community-based participatory research: Linking communities and universities to reduce cancer disparities
Although the development of CBPR has been accompanied by growth in empirical studies on the operations and impacts of CBPR programs, there are few studies that evaluate the effectiveness of CBPR programs. Weaving an Islander Network for Cancer Awareness Research and Training (WINCART) initiative is based in Southern California. The goal of WINCART is to decrease cancer disparities among Pacific Islander communities by connecting community-based organizations (CBOs) and academic institutions that work in cancer education, research, and training. Can community-based outreach activities increase links between CBOs and academic researchers? This paper describes a 2-year study that employed social network analysis…
Ethics and community-based participatory research: Perspectives from the field
The increase in health disparities signifies the importance of employing an ethical approach to CBPR. This article provides background on various ethical issues in health promotion and education practices/projects, and then uses a CBPR project located in the Lower Rio Grande Valley as a case example to discuss “ethical issues such as the importance of increased community involvement in research, ensuring that communities benefit from the research, sharing leadership roles, and sensitive issues regarding data collection and sharing”. The researchers from this project worked with community members to develop a code of ethics to guide the intervention, which was comprised…
Involving urban planning, social work, and public health faculty members in the civic renewal of the research university
What are some strategies for involving urban planning, social work, and public health faculty members in the civic renewal of the research university? At a time when citizens have “disengaged from democracy,” and universities have deemphasized their civic mission, this article examines ways in which these faculty members might join together and formulate strategies which complement their shared professional and public purposes on campus and in the community. Checkoway, B. (2008). Involving urban planning, social work, and public health faculty members in the civic renewal of the research university. Journal of Planning Education and Research, 27(4), 507-511.
Developmental Psychology
Overview: This course examines human development from conception through early adulthood with special a special focus on issues related to race, class & gender. It involves a 12-hour service-learning component in Head Start preschool classroom in Bridgeport CT where you will have the opportunity to act as “participant observers” and learn directly from the children, their teachers, and their families about child development and the complex array of biological, psychological, social, and political issues that impact on the course of healthy development. This course fulfills the U.S. Diversity requirement. Required Text: Berk, L.E. (2012). Infants, children and adolescents. (7th Edition). …
Human Behavior and the Social Environment
Course Description: The course will examine individual, group, organizational and societal theories of human development and their relevancy for social work practice. Students will use the theoretical paradigms presented to examine individual and social issues arising in social work practice. Fifteen hours of field work are required as a context for applying class room learning and preparing a case study for class presentation. Required Texts: Zastrow, C.H., & Kirst-Ashman, K.K. (latest edition). Understanding human behavior and the social environment. Belmont, CA: Brookes/Cole. NASW Code of Ethics, most recent edition. Other assigned readings will be provided from: Fine, M., Weiss,…
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