Community-based Research Practices Research Articles

Co-Creating News Oases in Media Deserts

The Media Deserts Project is a research effort to map and model the changing media landscape in the United States. Media deserts are defined as geographies lacking fresh, daily news and information. Using circulation data of US print newspapers, emerging hyperlocal online news sites in digital networks, and broadband access data from the Federal Communication Commission, the Media Deserts Project maps these changes using geographic information systems down to the zip code level, making visible local communication systems and gaps. To develop community-centered news and information solutions, this research team used community-based research practices, where students engaged with residents, local business leaders, health, education, and other administrators to examine the communication needs of three specific communities in Southeast Ohio. We centered our efforts on building relationships with community members and designing localized media tools. We learned key insights that we believe may travel well into other projects using community-based engagement, participatory design, and co-creation practices.

Community-based research during a pandemic: reflections from the multi-country EPIC project

In 2020, the COVID-19 health crisis affected all regions of the world, not sparing people already vulnerable to other viral epidemics such as HIV or HCV and/or those in precarious or socially marginalized situations. This is particularly the case for drug users or sex workers.Coalition PLUS, a network of associations fighting against HIV and viral hepatitis which defends and promotes the community-based approach, and its partners, have set up a multi-country community-based research project aimed at documenting the impact of the health crisis on the fight against HIV and viral hepatitis (key populations and community workers/activists), as well as the community responses put in place (EPIC survey).The objective of this paper is to reflect on the implementation of this community-based research study during the COVID-19 health crisis, and in particular the unforeseen difficulties to which the community-based research process had to confront and adapt. The goal is to draw lessons on what worked (and what did not work) in order to capitalize on community-based research practices during this pandemic and subsequently, facilitate the implementation of new research projects in similar contexts.

2021 PBRN CONFERENCE: "EMBRACING DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION".

NAPCRG continued its tradition of inspiring and sharing best practices in community-based research at its recent Practice Based Research Network (PBRN) Conference in June 2021. Generating new knowledge by conducting research in communities is widely recognized as necessary to achieve better health

Lessons learnt from CBR practice at Hua Don Primary Health Care, Thailand

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to determine the capacity map of professional learning community (PLC) practicing community-based research (CBR) in Ubon Ratchathani Rajabhat University, Thailand, and the implementation of the lessons learnt from the process and essential skills at Hua Don Primary Health Care (PHC).Design/methodology/approachParticipatory action research (PAR) design was conducted in two phases, one on campus and the other in the PHC. For gathering and validating the data, the snowball sampling technique, focus group, in-depth interviews and the triangulation method were used.FindingsThe PLC capacity map from the first phase provided the essential skills of CBR and the second phase revealed lessons learnt from the implementation in the Hua Don PHC. The shortcut in researching a new target area by a collaboration of the community leader and village health volunteers was prominent. The results could be interpreted in creating collaboration in health care with a new community.Originality/valueThe capacity map is a practical guideline for a beginner or CBR novice researcher, and the lessons learnt help the implementation in the health field, particularly in PHC, succeed smoothly.

Ethical practices in community-based research in non-suicidal self-injury: A systematic review.

The growing interest in community-based research on non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) reflects the high prevalence rates found among vulnerable adolescents and young adults. A significant concern in research with vulnerable populations, and on sensitive topics, is the development of an ethical framework that protects the needs and rights of the participants while responding to researchers' goals and limitations and the broader clinical and public health concerns. The aim of the present study was to review the ethical practices followed in community-based research on NSSI. A systematic review of literature was conducted, based on PRISMA guidelines, on community-based surveys in NSSI, published between 1995 and 2016. A total of 93 studies were included in the review. The results examine a range of ethical issues; the procedures for consent and assent for study participation, protection of confidentiality and the limits of confidentiality, assessment of imminent risk of suicide and subsequent processes, and debriefing measures. The interaction between the study characteristics and the reported ethical procedures has been examined, with a focus on participant age, study design (cross-sectional or longitudinal), survey modality (paper-based survey or online survey) and primary variable/s of interest (only NSSI or NSSI and suicidal ideation/behavior) under study. The review describes the typical ethical practices in community-based research on NSSI, identifies the gaps in the existing literature, and has implications for the formulation of best-practice guidelines.

Book Reviews | New Book Addresses “Lack of Guidance” for the Teaching And Practice of Community-Based Research

Book Reviews | New Book Addresses “Lack of Guidance” for the Teaching And Practice of Community-Based Research

Community-Based Equity Audits

Purpose: To equitably transform urban schools of color and the neighborhoods where they are nested requires approaches that promote community equity and foster solidarity among a range of stakeholders. However, most school–community approaches solely focus on improving school-based outcomes and leave educational leaders with little guidance for how to critically understand their school’s community context and act in solidarity with neighborhood stakeholders on community issues. The purpose of this conceptual article is to introduce what I call community-based equity audits and explain how educational leaders can use this process to work toward equitable school-community outcomes. Method and Approach: This process builds on equity audits in educational leadership, community audits, and community-based research practices and is theoretically grounded in Freirean dialogue. To demonstrate its impacts, this article draws on reflections of aspiring principals who conducted community-based equity audits in a leadership preparation program. Findings: The community-based equity audit consists of four phases: disrupt deficit views about community, conduct initial community inquiry and shared community experiences, establish a community leadership team, and collect equity, asset-based community data for action. Implications: This instrument is developed to guide educational leaders, and those who prepare them, in creating context-specific, equitable school–community solutions.

Caught up in power: Exploring discursive frictions in community research

This article outlines the debate around the emancipatory claims of community-based research (CBR) and identifies discursive frictions as a pivotal point upon which much of CBR practice revolves. Using a Foucauldian theoretical lens, we suggest that CBR is neither inherently emancipatory nor repressive, but that research outcomes are more often a product of power asymmetries in CBR relationships. To illustrate how power asymmetries in research relationships produce discursive frictions, several studies from our work and the literature are presented. The article provides examples of CBR relationships between the researcher and community members and relationships within the community to illustrate how power asymmetries and discursive frictions in these relationships dynamically influence research outcomes and thus alert researchers to the need to address power asymmetries not just before initiating CBR projects, but during CBR projects as well. We interrogate how power asymmetries and discursive frictions operate and are constructed in CBR in an attempt to highlight how research might be conducted more effectively and ethically. Finally, we indicate that some of the tensions and challenges associated with CBR might be ameliorated by the use of participatory facilitation methodologies, such as photo-voice and story circle discussion groups, that draw attention to power asymmetries and purposefully use more creative participatory tools to restructure power relationships and ultimately address the inequities that exist in the research process. Because CBR is continually caught up in power dynamics, we hope that highlighting some examples might offer an opportunity for increased dialogue and critical reflection on its claims of empowerment and emancipation.Keywords: discursive friction, Foucault, participatory methodologies, power asymmetries, research relationships, emancipatory research

Rapid implementation of a personalized medicine research program (PMRP), using a targeted next-generation sequencing (NGS) assay, in the community setting.

e22055 Background: Cancer care is evolving to a model of precision medicine where somatic genomic changes in a patient’s (pt’s) tumor are increasingly used to inform individualized management. We report rapid implementation of a PMRP in the hybrid setting of a non-university, community based research practice. Methods: A custom designed gene alteration (GA) panel covering all relevant regions of 68 genes was developed using sequencing by synthesis on an NGS platform. The NGS results were used to: 1-prioritize standard therapies; 2-match pts with clinical trials (CTs); and 3-serve as a data mining resource. An Institutional Review Board (IRB) approved prospective registration protocol was activated in September, 2014 with the objective of establishing a centralized longitudinal clinical, molecular phenotypic, and research data repository for newly diagnosed pts. Analysis endpoints include proportion of pts where NGS influenced management or enrollment in CTs. NGS results were categorized as actionable (app...

Perinatal program evaluations: methods, impacts, and future goals.

The objective of this methodology note is to examine perinatal program evaluation methods as they relate to the life course health development model (LCHD) and risk reduction for poor birth outcomes. We searched PubMed, CDC, ERIC, and a list from the Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs (AMCHP) to identify sources. We included reports from theory, methodology, program reports, and instruments, as well as reviews of Healthy Start Programs and home visiting. Because our review focused upon evaluation methods we did not include reports that described the Healthy Start Program. The LCHD model demonstrates the non-linear relationships among epigenetic factors and environmental interactions, intentionality or worldview within a values framework, health practices, and observed outcomes in a lifelong developmental health trajectory. The maternal epigenetic and social environment during fetal development sets the stage for the infant's lifelong developmental arc. The LCHD model provides a framework to study challenging maternal child health problems. Research that tracks the long term maternal-infant health developmental trajectory is facilitated by multiple, linked public record systems. Two instruments, the life skills progression instrument and the prenatal risk overview are theoretically consistent with the LCHD and can be adapted for local or population-based use. A figure is included to demonstrate a method of reducing interaction among variables by sample definition. Both in-place local programs and tests of best practices in community-based research are needed to reduce unacceptably high infant mortality. Studies that follow published reporting standards strengthen evidence.

Community-based research for food system policy development in the City of Guelph, Ontario

Community-based research (CBR) has grown in popularity as a research approach, which aims to foster collaboration between academic researchers and community members or organisations. CBR is often initiated with the intention of creating constructive social change at the same time as generating knowledge or understanding of specific concerns raised by community members. The June 2011 Ontario Provincial Planners Institute Call to Action, entitled Planning for food systems in Ontario, identified the need for participatory planning for sustainable food systems in municipal policy planning. This article provides an example of one such planning process in Guelph, Ontario. Using principles of CBR, researchers from the University of Guelph partnered with a grassroots food security organisation in order to collaborate on food policy planning and make a contribution to the review process for the City's Official Plan. Bringing together best practices from literature, case study examples, and engagement with citizens through a focus group session, the process resulted in a submission of policy recommendations to City staff. This article aims to contribute to the practice of CBR by highlighting the benefits and barriers encountered in one CBR process.

Questioning the Meaningfulness of Rigour in Community-Based Research: Navigating a Dilemma

As community-based research (CBR) continues to emerge, CBR practitioners are beginning to ask, “How do we know if we are doing CBR well?” For some, this question may bring to mind the concept of rigour. Yet, how meaningful is rigour among diverse CBR partners from community, government, and academia? Using an exploratory approach, we engaged in dialogue a group of seven CBR practitioners from diverse contexts and asked the question, “Is rigour a meaningful concept in CBR?” We used interpretive description to analyse the interview and guide the application of findings in CBR practice. The findings are presented as three themes: Obligation, Representation, and Turn to Action. Participants expressed a sense of obligation to meet often competing expectations to do CBR well. The fulfillment of one obligation sometimes meant compromising another, thus presenting a dilemma to CBR practitioners. Representation outlines participants' beliefs that some obligations can be met through the analysis, interpretation, and carefully contextualized presentation of research findings on behalf of CBR partnerships. In Turn to Action, participants described their desire to participate in the co-construction of understanding and identified a need to conceptualize the meaning of doing CBR well. We recommend that practitioners of CBR continue to form communities of practice in which to engage in dialogue about rigour; together, we can navigate the identified dilemma and collaboratively construct what it means to do CBR well. Specifically, we recommend that communities of CBR practice strive to: (a) be transparent during CBR collaboration, (b) be in dialogue with other CBR practitioners, and (c) co-construct the meaning of doing CBR well.

Organizing community-based research knowledge between universities and communities: lessons learned

This article explores teaching, learning, and research that dynamically engages students, community workers, community members, and academics in a type of knowledge organization: the practice of community-based research (CBR). This case study details a university course in which participants (i) work together in CBR activities that foster partnership between universities and agencies in the non-profit sector, particularly AIDS service organizations in the city of Vancouver, BC, (ii) build bridges between classroom- and community-grounded knowledges and personal experience, and (iii) explore the learning and ethical underpinnings of this experience. We argue that the interaction between students, professors, and community-based organizations that results from CBR and participatory action research provides a framework for community development and the transfer of knowledges, skills, and practices between communities and individuals.

Contrasting Approaches to Community-based Research and a Case Study of Community Sustainability in Toronto, Canada

Community-based research (CBR) describes a range of research approaches that link community members and external researchers in investigations that promote progressive social change as well as deeper understanding of specific issues important to communities. Increasingly, CBR is being carried out through community-university partnerships in which the research course-work of undergraduate and graduate students is integrated with the research needs of community organisations, providing much-needed intellectual resources to community groups while giving students invaluable experience in applying their academic skills. This article contributes to the understanding and practice of community-based research by situating a number of specific research approaches within a broad framework of CBR and by describing in detail one CBR initiative in Toronto, Canada.