Community-based participatory research (CBPR) is an applied collaborative approach that enables community residents to more actively participate in the full spectrum of research (from conception – design – conduct – analysis – interpretation – conclusions – communication of results) with a goal of influencing change in community health, systems, programs or policies. Community members and researchers partner to combine knowledge and action for social change to improve community health and often reduce health disparities. Academic/research and community partners join to develop models and approaches to building communication, trust and capacity, with the final goal of increasing community participation in the research process. It is an orientation to research which equitably involves all partners in the research process and recognizes the unique strengths that each brings.
Improving public health often entails moving beyond the conventional health care system to include integrated and innovative approaches. CBPR has emerged as an alternative research paradigm which integrates education and social action to improve health and deepen our scientific base of knowledge in the areas of health promotion, disease prevention, and health disparities. It is regarded as an effective method for transferring evidence-based research from clinical settings to communities that can most benefit thereby improving health. CBPR's community-partnered research processes offer the potential to generate better-informed hypotheses, develop more effective interventions, and enhance the translation of the research results into practice. Thus, CBPR is an essential tool for action-oriented and community-driven public health research.
Advantages of community-based participatory research include:
- Joining partners with diverse expertise to address complex public health problems
- Improving intervention design and implementation by facilitating participant recruitment and retention
- Increasing the quality and validity of research
- Enhancing the relevance and use of data
- Increasing trust and bridging cultural gaps between partners
- Providing resources for the communities involved
- Benefiting the community and researchers alike through the knowledge gained and actions taken
- The potential to translate research findings to guide the development of further interventions and policy change
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) continues supporting this collaborative approach; the NIH portfolio of CBPR increases annually in both quantity of funded projects and participating institutes/centers. More than two dozen Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOAs) on CBPR have been released over the past decade with support from the following NIH components: NCI, NCMHD, NCRR, NHLBI, NIAAA, NICHD, NIDA, NIDCD, NIDCR, NIEHS, NIMH, NINR, OBSSR, and ORWH.
Additionally, a CBPR Scientific Interest Group (SIG) has been established at the NIH with the purpose of strengthening communication among federal agencies with an interest in supporting CBPR methodologies in the conduct of biomedical and behavioral research, education, health care delivery, or policy. Complete information on the NIH CBPR SIG can be found at: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/training/esaig/cbpr_sig.htm.
OBSSR’s CBPR Activities and Resources
The NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) recognizes that in order to maximize the relevance, dissemination, and implementation of biomedical and behavioral research for the public, communities should have the opportunity to be actively engaged in the research enterprise, including active participation in research; translation and application of research findings to community-based practice and public health initiatives; and using research-generated evidence in support of public health policy decisions. Accordingly, OBSSR is committed to promoting community-partnered research and the advantages it offers in advancing the public’s health. Towards this end, OBSSR has developed numerous initiatives and resources in recent years as featured on this page. These activities and resources encourage and support community-partnered research in hopes of accelerating public health research and the impact of research findings.
Select the hyperlinked text for complete information:
Upcoming Initiatives
Full details are forthcoming:
- Manuscript: "Why Community-Based Participatory Research Matters: A Bird's Eye View from the National Institutes of Health" (in press) by Dana M. Sampson and Jennifer Brown Urban
- Training Workshop at 8th Annual International Conference on Urban Health: "Applying Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) to Effectively Improve the Health of Community Populations", Nairobi, Kenya October 22-23, 2009
- CBPR at NIH Showcase: “Celebrating 10 Years of Community-Based Participatory Research at the National Institutes of Health, 2000-2010”, NIH Main Campus, Bethesda, MD June 10-11, 2010
- International Training Institute: "Utilizing Community-Based Participatory Research to Improve Global Health: Reducing Disease Burden through Partnership Approaches", South Africa, Summer 2010
For additional information on the listed resources and initiatives, please contact OBSSR’s lead, Dana M. Sampson at Sampsond@od.nih.gov.
How can you obtain information on relevant funding opportunities at the NIH? There are several ways including:
- Subscribe to the Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) listserv dedicated to disseminating NIH Funding Opportunity Announcements on behavioral and social sciences research. Instructions on how to subscribe are available at: http://obssr.od.nih.gov/funding_opportunities/BSSR_guide_to_grants_at_the_NIH/guideIndex.aspx.
- Subscribe to the NIH Guide listserv which provides weekly listings of all new research opportunities at the NIH. Instructions on how to subscribe are available at: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/listserv.htm.
- Search the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts (a.k.a. “The NIH Guide”) which is the official publication for all NIH research grant policies, guidelines and funding opportunities. It is available at: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/.
- Subscribe to the Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) listserv that is co-sponsored by Community-Campus Partnerships for Health (CCPH) and the Wellesley Institute. The CBPR listserv is a resource for sharing knowledge and experience with the goal of contributing to strengthening the field of CBPR. To join the listserv, visit http://mailman2.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/cbpr.
Recommended References:
Achieving the Promise of Authentic Community-Higher Education Partnerships: Community Partners Speak Out! (2007). Seattle, WA: Community-Campus Partnerships for Health.
(Available online at: http://depts.washington.edu/ccph/pdf_files/CPSReport_final1.15.08.pdf)
Israel, B., Eng, E., Schulz. A., et al., (eds). (2005). Methods in community-based participatory research for health. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Israel, B., Schulz, A., Parker, E., Becker, A. (1998). Review of Community-Based Research: Assessing Partnership Approaches to Improve Public Health. Annual Review of Public Health, 19, 173-202.
Minkler, M. and Wallerstein, N. (eds). (2008). Community-Based Participatory Research for Health: From Process to Outcomes (2nd edition). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
Minkler, M., Breckwith Vasquez, V., Tajik, M., Petersen, D. (2008a). Promoting Healthy Public Policy through Community-Based Participatory Research. Oakland, CA: PolicyLink.
Seifer, S.D. and Calleson, D.C. (2004). Faculty perspectives on community-based research in academic health centers: Implications for policy and practice. Journal of Interprofessional Care. 18(4): 63-74.
Progress in Community Health Partnerships: Research, Education, and Action published by The Johns Hopkins University Press. *The first national scholarly journal dedicated to CBPR.
http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/progress_in_community_health_partnerships_research_education_and_action/
The Community Guide: A Guide to Community Preventive Services. http://www.thecommunityguide.org/index.html
Viswanathan, M., Ammerman, A., Eng, E., et al., (eds). (2004). Community-Based Participatory Research: Assessing the Evidence. Rockville, MD: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.
Wallerstein, N., Duran, B. (2006). Using community-based participatory research to address health disparities. Health Promotion Practice, 7(3), 312-23. |