Product Details

Author Information

Corresponding Author
Barbara A. Israel
University of Michigan School of Public Health
1415 Washington Heights
2794 SPH I
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029
United States
p: 734-647-3184
f: 734-763-7379
ilanais@umich.edu

Authors (listed in order of authorship):
Chris M. Coombe
University of Michigan School of Public Health

Robert McGranaghan
Colorado Clinical & Translational Sciences Institute (CCTSI)

J. Ricardo Guzman
Community Health and Social Services, Inc.

Edith C. Kieffer
University of Michigan

Richard Lichtenstein
University of Michigan

Murlisa Lockett
University of Michigan

Gloria Palmisano
REACH Detroit Partnership

Edith Parker
University of Iowa School of Public Health

Angela G. Reyes
Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation

Zachary Rowe
Friends of Parkside

Maria Salinas
Congress of Communities

Amy Schulz
University of Michigan

Product Description and Application Narrative Submitted by Corresponding Author

What general topics does your product address?

Nursing, Public Health, Social & Behavioral Sciences, Social Work

What specific topics does your product address?

Community coalition , Community engagement, Faculty development, Health disparities, Health equity, Partnership building , Community-based participatory research

Does your product focus on a specific population(s)?

applicable for all populations, especially communities of color and historically marginalized commun

What methodological approaches were used in the development of your product, or are discussed in your product?

Case study , Community needs assessment, Community-academic partnership, Community-based participatory research , Focus group , Participatory evaluation, Qualitative research, Quantitative research, Survey, Interview

What resource type(s) best describe(s) your product?

Curriculum, Evidence-based practice, Faculty development materials, Lecture/presentation, Manual/how to guide, Training material

Application Narrative

1. Please provide a 1600 character abstract describing your product, its intended use and the audiences for which it would be appropriate.*

Community-based participatory research (CBPR) is a partnership approach to research that equitably involves community members, organization representatives, and academic researchers in all aspects of the research process. CBPR aims to increase knowledge and understanding of what is being studied and to integrate the knowledge gained with interventions and policy changes to enhance the health and quality of life of community members.
This course is intended as an introduction to CBPR for people who are in the early stages of using or considering using CBPR. It is designed for academic researchers from multiple fields, including public health, education, nursing, medicine, social work, urban planning, and for health and human service practitioners, and members of community-based organizations. The training is divided into five sequential parts:
• Rationale for, definition and core principles of CBPR
• Strategies for forming, maintaining, sustaining, and evaluating CBPR partnerships
• Qualitative and quantitative data collection methods and interpretation
• Dissemination and translation of research findings
• Benefits, challenges, and recommendations for using CBPR for research and social change
Insights from the literature and the experiences of the Detroit Community-Academic Urban Research Center and its affiliated partnerships and projects are provided throughout. Users have the opportunity to engage individually or as a partnership group in interactive case study activities.

2. What are the goals of the product?

Participants in the CBPR course will be introduced to essential concepts related to community-based participatory research. By the end of the course, participants should be able to:
• Provide a rationale for developing a community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach for health.
• Define community-based participatory research.
• Describe the key principles of community-based participatory research.
• Explain the application of a community-based participatory research approach.
• Identify the core components/phases in conducting community-based participatory research.
• Discuss a conceptual model for community-based participatory research partnerships.
• Describe a process for initiating a CBPR partnership, including how to bring together partners, identify assets, and select priority issues.
• Identify essential elements of formalizing a CBPR partnership structure.
• Describe group dynamics for establishing a decision-making body for a CBPR partnership.
• Discuss three principal dimensions of partnership sustainability.
• Explain a conceptual framework for evaluating CBPR partnerships.
• Discuss key roles of partners in planning, designing, and conducting research using a CBPR approach.
• Describe the application of CBPR to three data collection methods—surveys, focus groups, and in-depth interviews.
• Give examples of how to provide feedback to partners and involve them in interpretation of qualitative and quantitative findings.
• Discuss the different audiences and mechanisms for disseminating and translating findings.
• Discuss the role of all partners in the dissemination and translation process.
• Explain how to develop and implement “Dissemination Guidelines” within the context of a CBPR partnership.
• Describe strategies for CBPR partnerships to apply the results of data collected to future research and action planning.
• Discuss the challenges and limitations of using a community-based participatory research approach.
• Explain the benefits of using a community-based participatory research approach.
• Describe lessons learned and recommendations for conducting community-based participatory research.

3. Who are the intended audiences or expected users of the product?

The CD-ROM is designed for health and human service practitioners, members of community-based organizations, and academic researchers from multiple fields, including, for example, public health, education, nursing, medicine, social work, and urban planning. The intended audience is those who are interested in learning more about principles and practice of, or are in the early stages of using or considering using community-based participatory research, or collaborative research in general.

4. Please provide any special instructions for successful use of the product, if necessary. If your product has been previously published, please provide the appropriate citation below.

This course is an introduction to community-based participatory research (CBPR) for people who are in the early stages of using or considering using CBPR. The material, based on a 20-hour short course, is divided into five sequential parts. This course takes approximately 7 hours to complete. Due to the volume of information covered, we recommend that individuals not attempt to complete the course in one sitting. The course, including the interactive exercises, is organized to be completed by individuals or by an intact partnership group
Depending upon whether this training is completed by an individual or as part of a group, the amount of time that it will take to complete each part will be different. The following times are estimated for completion of this training as an individual: Parts 1, 4 and 5 – one hour each, Parts 2 and 3 – two hours each.

5. Please describe how your product or the project that resulted in the product builds on a relevant field, discipline or prior work. You may cite the literature and provide a bibliography in the next question if appropriate.

The CD-ROM product builds on and contributes to a large field of literature and body of work from many academic disciplines related to participatory approaches to research (1-7). It recognizes that over the past decade, there has been ongoing emphasis on more comprehensive and participatory approaches to research and interventions to address the complex set of social determinants associated with population health, and more specifically with racial and ethnic inequities in health (3, 4, 8, 9). At the same time, funding opportunities that support partnership approaches to research addressing these problems have increased (10-12).

In the fields of public health, nursing, social work, and other related fields, the term community-based participatory research (CBPR) has been increasingly used in referring to such collaborative approaches (4, 13, 14). CBPR has been defined by Israel and colleagues (3, 15) as an approach that equitably involves all partners in all aspects of the research process. Community members, organization representatives, and researchers all contribute expertise and share decision-making and ownership.

In recent decades, CBPR has been lauded as a potent and viable approach to addressing health inequities in a range of public health disciplines (3, 16, 17), and policy and funding recommendations have been made to promote its use (18, 19).

CBPR has been identified as one of the eight areas in which all public health professionals need to be trained (20). As opportunities for the use of CBPR increases, so does demand for enhancing knowledge and skills of CBPR for both community and academic partners (2). Relatively few academic programs include formal training in CBPR in their curricula (21), and many practitioners have limited access to training in the approach. This leads to a need for and the development of innovative mechanisms for enhancing capacity to conduct CBPR.

The CD-ROM product seeks to meet the need for easily accessible, relevant materials geared toward a broad audience seeking practical information on how to implement a community-based participatory research approach. Its content is based on existing interactive and print educational materials that were developed by Detroit Urban Research Center partners. In addition, an extensive bibliography and resource section are included that provide access to the large body of literature and prior work upon which this CD-ROM is built.

6. Please provide a bibliography for work cited above or in other parts of this application. Provide full references, in the order sited in the text (i.e. according to number order). .

1. Israel BA, Eng E, Schulz AJ, Parker EA, editors. Methods in Community-Based Participatory Research for Health. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass; 2005.
2. Israel BA, Eng E, Schulz AJ, Parker EA, editors. Methods for Community-Based Participatory Research for Health. 2nd ed. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass; 2013.
3. Israel BA, Schulz AJ, Parker EA, Becker AB. Review of community-based research: Assessing partnership approaches to improve public health. Ann Rev Public Health 1998;19:173-202.
4. Minkler M, Wallerstein N, editors. Community-Based Participatory Research for Health: From Process to Outcomes. 2nd ed. San Francisco: Jossey Bass; 2008.
5. Park P, Brydon-Miller M, Hall B, Jackson T, editors. Voices of Change: Participatory Research in the United States and Canada. Westport, CT: Bergin & Garvey; 1993.
6. Reason P, Bradbury H, editors. The SAGE Handbook of Action Research: Participative Inquiry and Practice. 2nd ed. London: Sage; 2008.
7. Whyte WF. Participatory Action Research. Newbury Park, CA: Sage; 1991.
8. Mercer SL, Green LW. Federal funding and support for participatory research in public health and health care. In: Minkler M, Wallerstein N, editors. Community-Based Participatory Research for Health: From Process to Outcomes. 2nd ed. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass; 2008. p. 399-406.
9. Commission for the Social Determinants of Health. Closing the gap in a generation: Health equity through action on the social determinants of health. Available from http://www.who.int/social_determinants.en; 2008.
10. Catalani C, Minkler M. Photovoice: a review of the literature in health and public health. Health Educ Behav 2010;37(3):424-51.
11. Chen PG, Diaz N, Lucas G, Rosenthal MS. Dissemination of results in community-based participatory research. Am J Prev Med 2010;39(4):372-8.
12. Cook WK. Integrating research and action: A systematic review of community-based participatory research to address health disparities in environmental and occupational health in the USA. J Epidemiol Community Health 2008;62(8):668-676.
13. Israel BA, Lichtenstein R, Lantz P, McGranaghan R, Allen A, Guzman JR, et al. The Detroit Community-Academic Urban Research Center: Development, implementation and evaluation. J Public Health Manag Pract 2001;7(5):1-19.
14. Viswanathan M, Ammerman A, Eng E, Gartlehner G, Lohr K, Griffith D, et al. Community-based participatory research: Assessing the evidence. Contract No. 290-02-0016. Rockville, MD: RTI International-University of North Carolina Evidence-Based Practice Center, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; 2004.
15. Israel BA, Schulz AJ, Parker EA, Becker AB, Allen A, Guzman JR. Critical issues in developing and following CBPR principles. In: Minkler M, Wallerstein N, editors. Community-Based Participatory Research for Health: From Process to Outcomes. 2nd ed. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass; 2008. p. 47-66.
16. Leung MW, Yen IH, Minkler M. Community-based participatory research: A promising approach for increasing epidemiology's relevance in the 21st century. Int J Epidemiol 2004;33(3):499-506.
17. O'Fallon LR, Dearry A. Community-based participatory research as a tool to advance environmental health sciences. Environ Health Perspect 2002;110(2):155-159.
18. Minkler M, Blackwell AG, Thompson M, Tamir H. Community-based participatory research: Implications for public health funding. American Journal of Public Health 2003;93(8):1210-1213.
19. Israel BA, Schulz AJ, Parker EA, Becker AB. Community-based participatory research: Policy recommendations for promoting a partnership approach in health research. Educ Health 2001;14(2):182-197.
20. Gebbie KM, Rosenstock L, Hernandez LM, editors. Who Will Keep the Public Healthy? Educating Public Health Professionals for the 21st Century. Washington, D.C.: National Academies Press; 2003.
21. Smikowski J, Dewaneb S, Johnson ME, Brems C, Bruss C, Roberts LW. Community-based participatory research for improved mental health. Ethics Behav 2009;19(6):461-478.

7. Please describe the project or body of work from which the submitted product developed. Describe the ways that community and academic/institutional expertise contributed to the project. Pay particular attention to demonstrating the quality or rigor of the work:

• For research-related work, describe (if relevant) study aims, design, sample, measurement instruments, and analysis and interpretation. Discuss how you verified the accuracy of your data.
• For education-related work, describe (if relevant) any needs assessment conducted, learning objectives, educational strategies incorporated, and evaluation of learning.
• For other types of work, discuss how the project was developed and reasons for the methodological choices made.

This CD-ROM project was adapted from a 20-hour short course originally designed by the Detroit Community-Academic Urban Research Center (Detroit URC) for the Graduate Summer Session in Epidemiology at the University of Michigan School of Public Health. The course was developed and has been taught by faculty members and community partners involved in the Detroit URC, a community-based participatory research (CBPR) partnership established in 1995. The overall goal of the Detroit URC is to conduct research and interventions to reduce and ultimately eliminate health inequities in the city of Detroit. Examples in the course are taken from real-life projects from the Detroit URC and its affiliated CBPR partnerships.

One of the core goals of the Detroit URC is to promote and expand the use of CBPR, and a major activity related to this goal is to train potential CBPR practitioners. The 20-hour course is a tremendous opportunity to provide consistent, impactful content to interested groups. In recent years, the Detroit URC has offered scholarships to Detroit-based community members to attend the course free of charge, which has allowed the course to broaden its reach.

Community and academic partners worked in partnership to develop the curriculum of the short course, which included: creation of five session titles and content; drafting, reviewing and refining PowerPoint slides used in lectures; developing, practicing and refining group activities; developing a course evaluation and integrating evaluation results. The course is delivered over a period of five days, with each daily class being 4 hours long. Each session is co-developed and co-taught by a community and an academic partner. Participants complete an evaluation questionnaire at the end of the course that includes questions on what was most and least helpful and suggestions for improving the course. Each year the co-facilitators for each session meet to refine the presentation in advance of their session, based on evaluation results from the previous year.
The course provides students with an introduction to some of the core principles, concepts and methods involved in using a CBPR approach. Topics of focus include: describing and understanding partnership formation, maintenance and evaluation; the use of quantitative and qualitative methods (e.g., survey, focus group interview, in-depth interview) for the purposes of community assessment, examining basic research questions, and developing and evaluating interventions; and feedback, interpretation, dissemination and application of research results. The course also examines the rationale for, benefits of and challenges associated with using a community-academic partnership approach to research and interventions.

8. Please describe the process of developing the product, including the ways that community and academic/institutional expertise were integrated in the development of this product.

The CD-ROM was created utilizing the content of the summer short course described above, and a participatory approach was utilized. Multiple skills, expertise and perspectives (from Detroit URC community partners, academic researchers, Detroit URC staff, and the Michigan Public Health Training Center staff) were involved at each stage of the process. The short course was video-taped and transcribed and the three core authors of the CD-ROM initially used that material as the background for drafting the content of this product. Substantial revision and testing of pilot modules was provided by the 10 other course authors. Each of these authors has been an instructor in the “Methods in CBPR for Health” short course which served as the basis for this CD-ROM, as described in question 7. In total, two years was spent in the development of the product.

The academic contributors drew upon years of academic training and research experience, while community contributors built upon a tremendous wealth of community and organizational leadership experience. All authors have engaged in collaborative work together, conducting numerous CBPR projects in partnership for the past 18 years and thus share that expertise. The contributors have also engaged in co-presenting the work of the Detroit URC and conducting workshops together. This extensive expertise of community and academic partners was integrated in the development of the CD-ROM through the joint creation of the initial workshop sessions, described above, and the subsequent review and refinement of these materials as they were put into the format of the CD-ROM. Based on the considerable experience working together, and the long-standing relationships between the academic and community authors, the process for integrating their expertise was ongoing and quite seamless throughout the development of the CD-ROM.

9. Please discuss the significance and impact of your product. In your response, discuss ways your product has added to existing knowledge and benefited the community; ways others may have utilized your product; and any relevant evaluation data about impact, if available. If the impact of the product is not yet known, discuss its potential significance.

The CD-ROM has been available as a resource for approximately 3 years. In that time, over 3,365 individuals from 49 states and in over 100 countries have registered the CD-ROM or accessed the training online. Additional data on specific results from evaluation surveys of users is provided in question #11. Given that the CD-ROM is downloadable for free it has provided a comprehensive set of materials in an easily accessible and affordable format. In addition, since the format is set up primarily for individuals to take the course, they are able to do so at their own pace, reviewing concepts and methods, as needed. In addition, the resource section provides numerous links to other relevant materials and an extensive bibliography, thereby enabling the participant to pursue further information as desired.

The primary authors of the CD-ROM have received a number of requests to use it as part of undergraduate and graduate courses in CBPR. For 18 years, the Detroit URC has been focused on establishing and maintaining equitable partnerships to conduct CBPR projects aimed at understanding and addressing health inequities in Detroit. The Detroit URC has conducted a number of training workshops and the short-course (described above) which has expanded the audience of the Center nationally and internationally, but in small numbers each year. The CD-ROM has made this content accessible to much larger numbers of individuals and partnerships within a much greater geographic scope.

10. Please describe why you chose the presentation format you did.

The Michigan Public Health Training Center (MPHTC) based at the University of Michigan https://www.sph.umich.edu/mphtc/ offers competency-based training linked to the Essential Public Health Services and the Core Competencies for Public Health Professionals. Recognizing the value of increasing organizational capacity and creating learning organizations in existing public health entities, the MPHTC is committed to tailoring training to course participants. Trainings are designed to promote effective and accessible learning opportunities. In addition, through distance learning, MPHTC strengthens technological skills and links public health workers within Michigan and across state and national borders.

The free, online, computer-based CD-ROM format was chosen because it provides a learner-centered control of information. This allows users to maintain their own pace and navigate multiple options. The interactive nature of the case study activities allows users to access the case studies alone or in groups. These features enhance ease of use and make the content accessible to a broad audience. In addition, given the extensive quantity of material included, involving over 7 hours of instruction to complete, the CD-ROM format accommodates this volume of information in a visually appealing way, including, for example, photographs, tables, charts, diagrams – all intended to keep the participant engaged in the learning process. Furthermore, the CD-ROM includes a script of the complete spoken text for participants who learn best by having both options available to them. In addition, the CD-ROM includes an extensive bibliography and list of resources (e.g., web sites, training manuals) that participants can access.

11. Please reflect on the strengths and limitations of your product. In what ways did community and academic/institutional collaborators provide feedback and how was such feedback used? Include relevant evaluation data about strengths and limitations if available.

As each module was developed, community and academic collaborators reviewedthe module, and provided feedback on content and design. Their feedback was integrated into the next version by the three core authors and returned to all collaborators for further review. This participatory, iterative process was continued until all authors were satisfied with the final product.
Major strengths of our product include its easily accessible nature, learner-centered format, interactive exercises, applicability for individuals or groups, visually engaging features, high production quality, extensive set of resources included, and that the content is based on a long-standing partnership upon which to draw experience. In addition, the participatory approach to its creation certainly enhanced the final result. The online course offers CEU credits for Nursing and Certified Health Education Specialists.

Some limitations are that some of the experiential learning methods (such as small group activities) are not easily adapted into a CD-ROM format. In addition, CBPR collaboration is dynamic and iterative. It is difficult to convey that spirit in a static individual-based course.

We are able to track participant feedback as individuals complete the course. The course was rated very highly in participant surveys. Evaluation data shows that the course was well-received. Over 90% of participants who completed a post-course evaluation agreed or strongly agreed that objectives were met and that the technology to present the course was effective. Equally favorable ratings were obtained on course ratings about the effectiveness of teaching resources, learning resources, interactive exercises, and interactive questions. Over 95% of course participants agreed or strongly agreed that the course was useful. Additionally, over 80% would recommend the course with no reservations.

Some weaknesses of the course as identified by course recommendations in the post-course evaluation included making the course shorter. Most participants spent about 5-6 hours on the course. Another comment was about making the course easier to download and access. In response to this recommendation, the course is available as a downloadable file on the MPHTC website and a limited number of CD-ROMs are available upon request.

12. Please describe ways that the project resulting in the product involved collaboration that embodied principles of mutual respect, shared work and shared credit. If different, describe ways that the product itself involved collaboration that embodied principles of mutual respect, shared work and shared credit. Have all collaborators on the product been notified of and approved submission of the product to CES4Health.info? If not, why not? Please indicate whether the project resulting in the product was approved by an Institutional Review Board (IRB) and/or community-based review mechanism, if applicable, and provide the name(s) of the IRB/mechanism.

The development of the content that is included in the CD-ROM was completed under the guidance of the CBPR principles that the Detroit URC has adopted (www.detroiturc.org). This involves conducting work in an equitable way according to the norms of partnership, including mutual respect, recognition of the knowledge, expertise, and resource capacities of the participants in the process, open communication, and shared power and decision making. The CBPR short course, as described above, was jointly designed and is co-taught by academic and community partners. The stipend received for teaching the course is divided between the co-trainers, and community as well as academic instructors are listed in the course syllabus and share credit for the content of the curriculum.

The CD-ROM itself motivated collaboration with a new entity for the Detroit URC: The Michigan Public Health Training Center. Detroit URC contributors and the Training Center staff worked together well, and currently share responsibility and credit for promoting, disseminating and evaluating the product.

All collaborators have been notified and have encouraged and approved submission of this product to CES4Health.info.

The development of the short course content did not involve direct research and therefore was exempt from IRB approval. However, all research projects referred to in the course curriculum and CD-ROM were approved by University of Michigan Institutional Review Board of Health Science and Health Behavior.