scholarly journals Assessing Health Promotion Interventions: Limitations of Traditional Research Methods in Community-Based Studies

2017 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 573-580 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne Dressel ◽  
Robert Schneider ◽  
Melissa DeNomie ◽  
Jennifer Kusch ◽  
Whitney Welch ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Promotion ◽  
Research Methods ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Community Settings ◽  
Community Based ◽  
African American Adults ◽  
Randomized Controlled ◽  
Traditional Research ◽  
Health Promotion Interventions

Most low-income Americans fail to meet physical activity recommendations. Inactivity and poor diet contribute to obesity, a risk factor for multiple chronic diseases. Health promotion activities have the potential to improve health outcomes for low-income populations. Measuring the effectiveness of these activities, however, can be challenging in community settings. A “Biking for Health” study tested the impact of a bicycling intervention on overweight or obese low-income Latino and African American adults to reduce barriers to cycling and increase physical activity and fitness. A randomized controlled trial was conducted in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in summer 2015. A 12-week bicycling intervention was implemented at two sites with low-income, overweight, or obese Latino and African American adults. We found that randomized controlled trial methodology was suboptimal for use in this small pilot study and that it negatively affected participation. More discussion is needed about the effectiveness of using traditional research methods in community settings to assess the effectiveness of health promotion interventions. Modifications or alternative methods may yield better results. The aim of this article is to discuss the effectiveness and feasibility of using traditional research methods to assess health promotion interventions in community-based settings.

Abstract 070: Community-based, Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial Increases Physical Activity In Diverse, Low Income Older Adults Over 2-year Period

Circulation ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 143 (Suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Katie Crist ◽  
Fatima Tuz Zahra ◽  
Kelsie M Full ◽  
Marta M Jankowska ◽  
Loki Natarajan
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Randomized Controlled Trial ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Randomized Controlled ◽  
Income Status ◽  
Cluster Randomized

Objective: Older adults are the least active population group in the U.S. Low income and ethnically diverse communities have fewer physical activity (PA) related resources and facilities, which contributes to lower PA levels and disparities in cardiovascular (CVD) risk factors and disease outcomes. This study assessed the hypothesis that low income and diverse older adults participating in the multilevel Peer Empowerment Program 4 Physical Activity (PEP4PA) would increase moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA), improve blood pressure (BP), perceived quality of life (PQoL), and depressive symptoms to a greater extent than older adults receiving usual senior center programming. Methods: In a cluster-randomized controlled trial (RCT) in 12 senior centers, 476 older adults (mean age 71.4 years, 76% female, 60% low income, 38% minority) were assigned to a PA intervention (n=267) or control (n=209) condition. The peer-led intervention included individual self-monitoring and counseling, group walks and social support, and community advocacy to improve walking conditions. Outcomes included minutes of MVPA per day (7-day accelerometer), systolic and diastolic BP (automatic cuff), PQoL (PQoL-20) and depressive symptoms (CES-D 10) at baseline, 6, 12, 18 and 24 months. To account for multiple measurement days and clustering of participants within senior centers, mixed effects regression models with random effects estimated the intervention effects on all outcomes between groups over time. Models were adjusted for imbalanced baseline covariates. A three-way interaction term assessed whether intervention effects differed by income status. Results: Compared to the control group, intervention participants significantly increased MVPA from baseline at 6, 12, 18 and 24 months by 8, 11, 9 and 9 minutes/day respectively (p<0.001), with increases remaining statistically significant across the 2-year period. The intervention group significantly increased mean PQoL scores from 7.2 at baseline to 7.6 (p<0.001), 7.8 (p=0.008) and 7.7 (p<0.001) at 12, 18 and 24 months, compared to control participants. No significant effects were observed for BP or depressive symptoms. Low income participants decreased minutes of MVPA, compared to higher income participants, at 12 and 24 months (β=-7.9, p=0.008 and β=-10.8, p=0.001). Conclusions: The multilevel RCT achieved sustained increases in MVPA and QoL in a diverse cohort of older adults across 2 years of follow up. The peer-led, community-based intervention provides a sustainable model to improve health behaviors related to CVD in an at-risk and often difficult to reach aging population. Further exploration is needed to understand what components of the intervention may be modified to address the differential effects by income status.

scholarly journals Evaluation of a community-based mentoring program on psychosocial functioning of adolescents with a visual impairment: A randomized controlled trial

2020 ◽  
pp. 026461962093594
Author(s):  
Eline CM Heppe ◽  
Agnes M Willemen ◽  
Sabina Kef ◽  
Carlo Schuengel
Keyword(s):  
Visual Impairment ◽  
Psychosocial Functioning ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Mentoring Program ◽  
Community Settings ◽  
Community Based ◽  
Youth Outcomes ◽  
Randomized Controlled ◽  
Trial Register ◽  
The Impact

This study evaluated the efficacy of a mentoring program on improving psychosocial functioning of young people with a visual impairment (VI). Furthermore, the impact of experimentally matching mentees to mentors with or without VI on youth outcomes was examined. A total of 76 adolescents with VI (15–22 year; 46% boys) were randomized into a yearlong mentoring program ( n = 51) or care-as-usual ( n = 25). Mentoring involved one-on-one activities within community settings. Psychosocial functioning was improved in all participants during the study ( d = 0.35–1.06); however, mentoring outperformed care-as-usual only for autonomy (95% CI: 0.003, 0.31; d = 0.44) and competence satisfaction (95% CI: 0.02, 0.34; d = 0.55), and not for the other six psychosocial outcomes ( d < 0.36). Matching similarity was not significantly related to the outcomes assessed. Mentoring was of limited benefit for psychosocial functioning of youth with VI. This trial is registered in the Netherlands Trial Register NTR4768.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document