Voices of Community Partners: Perspectives Gained from Conversations of Community-Based Participatory Research Experiences

• Main Authors: Heather J. Williamson, Carmenlita Chief, Dulce Jiménez, Andria Begay, Trudie F. Milner, Shevaun Sullivan, Emma Torres, Mark Remiker, Alexandra Elvira Samarron Longorio, Samantha Sabo, Nicolette I. Teufel-Shone
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2020-07-01
• Series: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
• Subjects: community-based participatory research; action research; community-engaged research; participatory research; community-based research; minority health
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/17/14/5245

Community-based participatory research (CBPR) has been documented as an effective approach to research with underserved communities, particularly with racial and ethnic minority groups. However, much of the literature promoting the use of CBPR with underserved communities is written from the perspective of the researchers and not from the perspective of the community partner. The purpose of this article is to capture lessons learned from the community partners’ insight gained through their experiences with CBPR. A multi-investigator consensus method was used<b> </b>to qualitatively code the transcripts of a CBPR story-telling video series. Seven major themes were identified: (1) expectations for engaging in research, (2) cultural humility, (3) respecting the partnership, (4) open communication, (5) genuine commitment, (6) valuing strengths and recognizing capacities, and (7) collaborating to yield meaningful results. The themes drawn from the community partner’s voice align with the tenets of CBPR advanced in the academic literature. More opportunities to include the community voice when promoting CBPR should be undertaken to help introduce the concepts to potential community partners who may be research cautious.