scholarly journals Designing user-centred mHealth initiatives to promote healthy behaviours for children with disabilities: A feasibility/pilot study of the Jooay App (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keiko Shikako-Thomas ◽  
Ebele RI Mogo ◽  
Valerie Grand-Maison ◽  
Robert Simpson ◽  
Lesley Pritchard-Wiart ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Urban Areas ◽  
Children With Disabilities ◽  
Underserved Populations ◽  
Implementation Process ◽  
Health Behaviours ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Mobile App ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Action Research Approach

BACKGROUND The gap between research and its practical application in community settings limits its impact on public health. Closing this gap has the potential to improve the well-being of underserved groups, such as children with disabilities. Mobile health holds promise in closing this gap by helping underserved populations build community and improve their access to community resources and supports that can lead to improved health behaviours. OBJECTIVE In this feasibility pilot, we describe the development of the mobile app, Jooay. Jooay was developed in partnership with stakeholders to facilitate access to leisure and physical activity community programs for children and youth with disabilities. We also reflect on the lessons learned throughout the implementation process that are relevant for improving health behaviours for children with disabilities. METHODS We used a participatory action research approach in the development of the app. We also administered a cross-sectional survey to current Jooay users and analysed various app usage indicators to explore use patterns and user feedback and preferences. Finally, we critically appraised the implementation process, using the best practices for implementation research by Peters et al. (2013). RESULTS Our analysis of usage data revealed that access to the Jooay app is concentrated in urban areas. Perceptions, attitudes, and information needs varied according to the type of user. Use of the mobile app changes over time, with usage decreasing after download, showing a need for sustained engagement of app users. Users found value in using the app to identify activities they would not otherwise know about. However, app use alone was not enough to improve participation. We also encountered challenges with survey recruitment and attrition, suggesting the need for more seamless and engaging means for data collection within this population. CONCLUSIONS Using the information gained from this study, we intend to improve the next iteration of the Jooay app to sustain user engagement and behaviour change. We will also conduct a larger study assessing the relationship between urban design and access to inclusive and adaptive leisure programs. This study will inform the improvement of app listings and an understanding of the different user groups.

scholarly journals The Healthy Primary School of the Future: A Contextual Action-Oriented Research Approach

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (10) ◽  
pp. 2243 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nina H. M. Bartelink ◽  
Patricia van Assema ◽  
Maria W. J. Jansen ◽  
Hans H. C. M. Savelberg ◽  
Maartje Willeboordse ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Primary School ◽  
Economic Status ◽  
Implementation Process ◽  
Health Behaviours ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Process Data ◽  
Population Process ◽  
The Future ◽  
Oriented Research

Background: Schools can play an important role in promoting children’s health behaviours. A Dutch initiative, ‘The Healthy Primary School of the Future’, aims to integrate health and well-being into the school system. We use a contextual action-oriented research approach (CARA) to study the implementation process. Properties of CARA are its focus on contextual differences and the use of monitoring and feedback to support and evaluate the process of change. The aim of this article is to describe the use of the approach. Methods: Four schools (each with 200–300 children, aged 4–12 years) were included; all located in low socio-economic status areas in the south of the Netherlands. Data collection methods include interviews, observations, questionnaires, and health and behavioural measurements. Research contributions include giving feedback and providing schools with a range of possibilities for additional changes. The contextual data we examine include schools’ health promoting elements, practices of teachers and parents, dominating organisational issues, and characteristics of the student population; process data include the presence of potential barriers to changes. Discussion: CARA is an adaptive research approach that generates knowledge and experiences on how to deal with health promotion in complex systems. We think this approach can set an example for research efforts in comparable initiatives.

scholarly journals Integrating a Sport-Based Trauma-Sensitive Program in a National Youth-Serving Organization

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Shaikh ◽  
C. Bean ◽  
L. Bergholz ◽  
M. Rojas ◽  
M. Ali ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Program Development ◽  
Program Implementation ◽  
Effective Means ◽  
Academic Community ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Community Context ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Prevention Measures ◽  
Action Research Approach ◽  
Interdisciplinary Partnership

AbstractThere is a pressing need to equip youth-serving community organizations to respond to the unique needs of trauma-exposed children. Early prevention measures can be an effective means of redirecting children to self-regulatory healing, while facilitating their transition toward strength-based thriving. Sport can offer a powerful opportunity to reach these children; however there remains little information on how to effectively develop, deliver, evaluate, and sustain trauma-sensitive sport programs in a community context. The purpose of this paper is to outline a case study of integrating sport-based trauma-sensitive practices with BGC Canada’s national Bounce Back League program. An interdisciplinary partnership of academic, community, and practice experts used a community-based participatory action research approach, paired with a knowledge translational approach, to guide the process of program development. Mixed methods (e.g., surveys, logbooks, interviews, focus groups, online communications) were used to generate ongoing insights of staff’s training experiences, successes and challenges of program implementation, and potential impact of program on club members. Several stages of program development are described, including: (a) collaboratively planning the program; (b) piloting the program to three clubs; (c) adapting the program using pilot insights; (d) expanding the adapted program to ten clubs; and (e) creating opportunities to maintain, sustain, and scale-out practices throughout grant duration and beyond. Lessons learned regarding the leadership team’s experiences in terms of developing, adapting, and integrating trauma-sensitive practices in this community context are shared.

Are you listening? Echoing the voices of looked after children about their transition to secondary school

2021 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-55
Author(s):  
Yvonne J Francis ◽  
Laura Rowland ◽  
Sarah Humrich ◽  
Sally Taylor
Keyword(s):  
Secondary School ◽  
School Environment ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Social Connections ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Participatory Action ◽  
Vulnerable Children ◽  
Looked After Children ◽  
Action Research Approach ◽  
Childhood Event

Transition to secondary school is a significant childhood event, especially for the most vulnerable children. Many looked after children experience multiple episodes of instability, loss and change which can affect this move. Research shows that school belonging promotes acceptance, inclusion and respect, and impacts positively on school transfer and participation. Asking children for their views on matters that affect them can ease the process and increase their belonging and well-being. This article seeks to echo the voices of 36 children aged 10 to 12 who participated in a therapeutic primary to secondary transition initiative for looked after children. Informed by a participatory action research approach, its focus was to facilitate the child’s voice. Child-friendly, multi-method techniques and activities were used to elicit their views about the transition. Social connections, relationships, feeling safe and belonging within the school environment emerged as key themes. Children specifically highlighted the importance of friendships as a mechanism for supporting their belonging during this time. They also voiced the need for their social connections and belonging to be promoted. This unique intervention provides a framework for facilitating the voices of looked after children and underlines the need for practitioners to listen and understand moves from primary to secondary schools from the child’s perspective.

scholarly journals Student Emotions Matter

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-14
Author(s):  
Wendee White ◽  
Richard D Ingram
Keyword(s):  
Action Research ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Student Experience ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Study Data ◽  
Coping Resources ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Postgraduate Student ◽  
Action Research Approach

Increasingly, the taught postgraduate student experience is being recognised as a complex journey influenced by a multiplicity of interconnected factors that are institution-related, discipline specific, and socio-culturally informed. This emergent recognition of the complexity of being a TPG student underpinned the research study reported in this paper; well-being was conceptualised as central to the student experience and interconnected with five facets of the student journey. It was explored through the lens of emotion and as an independent variable. Guided by principles of pragmatism, the study followed an action research approach seeking the perceptions of TPG students engaged in academic study and in turn reports the findings relating to their student experience. This paper reports on findings from year 1 (2017-18 academic year) of a 3-year longitudinal study.  Data were collected in 2 phases using an online survey followed by focus group interviews and then underwent thematic analysis.  Our findings reinforce and further inform the understanding that the TPG student experience is uniquely complex. Through our exploration we have come to understand TPG student experience as an emotionally rich process influenced by three dimensions of the student journey, degree of connectedness; effectiveness of supports; and quality of communication, that elicit threat or challenge appraisals based on perceived demands and coping resources, triggering emotion responses that impact well-being, and learner engagement.  Keywords: taught postgraduate student experience, well-being, emotion, action research

scholarly journals Hand-arm vibration management: an operational health and safety strategy framework

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
David John Edwards ◽  
Igor Martek ◽  
Obuks Ejohwomu ◽  
Clinton Aigbavboa ◽  
M. Reza Hosseini
Keyword(s):  
Critical Realism ◽  
Health And Safety ◽  
Opportunity To Learn ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
Work Place ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Philosophical Approach ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Action Research Approach

PurposeHuman vibration exposure from hand-operated equipment emissions can lead to irreparable and debilitating hand-arm vibration syndrome (HAVS). While work-place health and well-being (H&WB) policies, strategies and procedures have been extensively researched and documented, little has been done to develop a specific strategic framework tailored to the management of hand-arm vibration (HAV). This study fills that gap.Design/methodology/approachA mixed philosophical approach of interpretivism and critical realism is adopted within a case study of a utilities contractor. Within this overarching epistemological design, action research approach is implemented via a three-stage investigation, namely, relevant company H&WB documents and procedures were examined, leading to the formulation of semi-structured interview questioning of the H&WB team. Their responses informed the next line of questions, delivered to middle-management responsible for overseeing H&S.FindingsThe findings are instructive in revealing that while substantial documentation management (augmented with protocols and checks) was in place, the system fell short of implementation within the workforce and thus failed to preserve worker H&WB. The investigation generated recommendations for shoring up H&WB deficiencies observed and developed a theoretical model to represent these. Though these recommendations were developed in response to a specific case, they form the core of a HAV operational H&WB strategy framework with applicability over a broader context.Originality/valueThis research provides unique insight into contemporary industry practices employed to manage HAV in the workplace and represents an invaluable opportunity to learn from prevailing practices and rectify deficiencies observed.

scholarly journals The Learning History Methodology: An Infrastructure for Collective Reflection to Support Organizational Change and Learning

2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. pp71-83
Author(s):  
Julie Béliveau ◽  
Anne-Marie Corriveau
Keyword(s):  
Organizational Change ◽  
Organizational Learning ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Support Tool ◽  
Learning History ◽  
Action Research Approach

Organization members often complain about insufficient time to reflect collectively as they grapple with constant significant changes. The Learning History methodology can support this collective reflection. Given the scant empirical studies of this action research approach, the present paper fills this gap by giving an overview of this methodology and by presenting a qualitative study that answers the following research question: How does the Learning History methodology contribute to collective reflection among organization members during major organizational change? To answer this question, an empirical research project was led within five healthcare organizations in Canada during their implementation of the Planetree person-centered approach to management, care, and services. The data set includes 150 semi-structured interviews, 20 focus groups and 10 feedback meetings involving organization members representing all hierarchical levels in the five participating institutions. The results highlight the five types of contributions of the Learning History methodology to collective reflection within the five institutions that participated in the study: 1) a process of expression, dialogue, and reflection among organization members; 2) a portrait of the change underway; 3) a support tool for the change process; 4) a vector for mobilizing stakeholders; and 5) a source of organizational learning.  The results also show how organization members’ collective reflection is built through the various stages of the Learning History methodology. By demonstrating that this collective reflection leads to true organizational learning, the findings position the Learning History as a research-action method useful both from a research standpoint and as an organizational development tool. In the conclusion, lessons learned using the LH approach are shared from a researcher’s perspective. This paper should interest researchers and practitioners who seek research methodologies that can offer an infrastructure for collective reflection to support organizational change and learning.

“Recognize Our Humanity”: Immigrant Youth Voices on Health Care in Arizona’s Restrictive Political Environment

2018 ◽  
Vol 29 (4) ◽  
pp. 498-509 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sofía Gómez ◽  
Heide Castañeda
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Health Care Providers ◽  
Immigrant Youth ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Policy Recommendations ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Care Needs ◽  
Action Research Approach ◽  
Important Position

The “DACAmented Voices in Healthcare” project examined the intersection of restrictive immigration policies and health care via photovoice, a participatory action research approach, with immigrant youth living in Arizona, who were recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. These “DACAmented” youth took part in nine photovoice sessions exploring their health care experiences and accessibility to care using documentary photography and narratives. They poignantly illustrated their experiences through images identifying their main health concerns and strengths, facilitating the development of health policy recommendations. This article illustrates the thematic findings and discusses policy recommendations and lessons learned from presentations to policy makers and health care providers. Findings suggest that immigrant youth are knowledgeable of their family’s health care needs and hold a unique and important position within mixed-status households. Health care providers can benefit from the proposed recommendations by building bridges to care to address health equity in immigrant communities.

Collaboration in the Large

2011 ◽  
pp. 115-136 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diane H. Sonnenwald ◽  
Paul Solomon ◽  
Noriko Hara ◽  
Reto Bolliger ◽  
Thomas H. Cox
Keyword(s):  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Visual Aids ◽  
Organizational Infrastructure ◽  
Geographically Dispersed ◽  
Action Research Approach ◽  
Geographically Distributed ◽  
Social Organizational ◽  
Approach Working ◽  
Videoconferencing Technology

This chapter discusses the social, organizational and technical challenges and solutions that emerged when facilitating collaboration through videoconferencing for a large, geographically dispersed research and development (R&D) organization. Collaboration is an integral component of many R&D organizations. Awareness of activities and potential contributions of others is fundamental to initiating and maintaining collaboration, yet this awareness is often difficult to sustain, especially when the organization is geographically dispersed. To address these challenges, we applied an action research approach, working with members of a large, geographically distributed R&D center to implement videoconferencing to facilitate collaboration and large group interaction within the center. We found that social, organizational and technical infrastructures needed to be adapted to compensate for limitations in videoconferencing technology. New social and organizational infrastructure included: explicit facilitation of videoconference meetings; the adaptation of visual aids; and new participant etiquette practices. New technical infrastructure included: upgrades to videoconference equipment; the use of separate networks for broadcasting camera views, presentation slides and audio; and implementation of new technical operations practices to support dynamic interaction among participants at each location. Lessons learned from this case study may help others plan and implement videoconferencing to support interaction and collaboration among large groups.

The Biophilia Hypothesis and Mental Health

2022 ◽  
pp. 253-265
Author(s):  
Bonnie Carter King
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Urban Planning ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Meaning Making ◽  
Underserved Populations ◽  
Health Benefits ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Biophilic Design ◽  
Mental Health Benefits ◽  
Biophilia Hypothesis

The purpose of this chapter is to highlight literature related to the benefits of spending time in nature and the usefulness of biophilic design to boost mental health. Biophilic design can increase feelings of well-being of workers or inhabitants, increase connection to purpose and meaning-making, and inspire creativity. This chapter will outline (1) research connected to the mental health benefits of spending time in nature for both children and adults; (2) a description of the biophilia hypothesis; (3) an exploration of nature, spirituality, and meaning-making through the lens of the biophilia hypothesis; (4) biophilic design and equity regarding nature access in urban areas for underserved populations; and (5) a call for increased integration of biophilic design into architecture and urban planning.

Key aspects for the sustainable coordination of a process to facilitate holistic well-being in South African schools

2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 692-701 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ansie Elizabeth Kitching ◽  
Bianke van Rooyen
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Action Learning ◽  
School Context ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Participatory Action ◽  
School Communities ◽  
Action Research Approach ◽  
Clear Vision ◽  
Key Aspects

AbstractA holistic well-being approach, understood as an approach that pays attention to the promotion of individual, relational and collective well-being in a particular context, is proposed as a way to address the fragmented nature in which mental health and well-being programmes are implemented in school communities in South Africa. The goal of this paper is to indicate key aspects for sustainable coordination of a process to facilitate holistic well-being in South African schools. Research was conducted in six South African schools with the aim of developing an integrated, multilevel process to facilitate holistic well-being in these contexts. A participatory action learning and action research approach was applied. As part of this research, key aspects that could contribute to the sustainable coordination of holistic well-being were identified. The research comprised a cross-case analysis of the data gathered, as well as a focus group that was held with the coordinators who facilitated the development of the process in each school. In addition, the school principals completed a semi-structured questionnaire, and Skype interviews were conducted with four international experts. The five aspects identified as key to the sustainable coordination of well-being are: that ownership and responsibility should reside in the school context; that there should be a clear vision for the promotion of holistic well-being; that the connections between all involved should be deepened; that all efforts to promote holistic well-being should be integrated, and that the complexity of the process should be acknowledged.

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