"Hey, mom, thanks!": use of focus groups in the development of place-specific materials for a community environmental action campaign.

Abstract

We examined the relevance of five strategies to reduce the risk of exposure to environmental hazards for African-American and Hispanic children living in Northern Manhattan in New York City. Researchers conducting a community-wide intervention to increase awareness of environmental health hazards identified five strategies for keeping children healthy, preventing asthma, and promoting children's growth and development. These strategies were based on current scientific knowledge of environmental health and were tested and refined through a series of focus groups. The 14 focus groups were conducted with women of childbearing age living in the communities under study. The purpose of the focus groups was to test the relevancy of the five strategies and to obtain data to inform the intervention's social action campaign. Here authors discuss the process of identifying strategies for risk reduction and incorporating community residents' perceptions of risk into health risk messages. The authors argue that broader social and historical contexts are important in shaping community members' interpretations of risk and subsequent response to health education campaigns.

Environmental Research Translation: Enhancing interactions with communities at contaminated sites

“…Conversely, a member of the affected community may prefer information specific to the chemical of concern, the risks they pose, and possible methods to reduce exposure. To select which information-transfer mechanism to use for affected communities specifically, i.e., delineating the place-specific strategy, it is crucial to learn the community’s ecology and the social context in which the environmental contamination and human health risks are embedded (Green et al 2002; Caron and Serrell, 2009). By understanding the community’s ecology, one is able to establish and ensure a two-way dialogue with affected communities.…”

Qualitative environmental health research: an analysis of the literature, 1991-2008

“…Three of the seven articles published by EHP are in mini-monographs (Furgal and Seguin 2006;Green et al 2002;Lipscomb et al 2005) and do not conform to the traditional format for a research publication in EHP (i.e., including a structured abstract and the traditional research article format of introduction, methods, results, and discussion). Three other EHP articles were published in the same supplement, titled "Migrant and Seasonal Farmworkers and Pesticides: CommunityBased Approaches to Measuring Risks and Reducing Exposure" .…”

“…A separate study reported that an element of a proposed redevelopment plan intended to improve health was perceived by residents to be a harbinger of crime: Focus groups revealed that residents were concerned that the proposed cycle/ walkway would increase the vulnerability of their homes and cars to vandalism (Trayers et al 2006). A third study that involved focus groups of African-American and Hispanic women in New York City identified a long list of environmental concerns among study participants that had not been anticipated by researchers, including needles, AIDS, drugs, violence, child abuse, domestic abuse, verbal and physical abuse, diseases, mental illness, pollution, rodents, brokendown buildings, and roaches (Green et al 2002).…”

“…A focus group study of women in New York City that identified a huge variety of environmental health concerns among participants concluded: "Few programs address, much less reduce, the powerful social, political, and economic forces that push urban residents into ill health" (Green et al 2002). This illustrates the findings of many studies that context-specific social, cultural, and economic circumstances shape perceptions of environment and health, and the relationship between the two (i.e., environmental health).…”

Awareness of environmental risks and protective actions among minority women in Northern Manhattan.

“…The process of developing the campaign themes and materials is described in detail in the accompanying paper in this issue by Green and her colleagues, who conducted focus groups with more than 100 residents of Northern Manhattan to learn their views of the environment and to incorporate these views into the themes of the campaign (2). The findings from the focus groups led us to add two environmental concerns identified by community residents-proper management of garbage and abuse of drugs and alcohol-to the initial themes identified by CCCEH scientists: reducing exposure to lead, environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), and air pollution; controlling household pests safely with low-toxicity pesticides; and including fruits and vegetables in family meals to ensure adequate nutrition.…”