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Smith C, Frerichs L, Hoover S, Robinson-Ezekwe N, Khanna A, Wynn M, Ellerby B, Joyner L, Lindau ST, Corbie G. "If you're in a community together, then you're basically a family": Perceptions of community among a predominantly African-American/Black youth cohort in a semi-rural region in the Southeastern United States. J Community Psychol 2023; 51:880-905. [PMID: 36349440 PMCID: PMC10006289 DOI: 10.1002/jcop.22945] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2021] [Revised: 09/08/2022] [Accepted: 09/18/2022] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
Geographic racism gives rise to health inequities that impact communities in detrimental ways. Southern ethnic minority groups, particularly African American/Black semi-rural communities, are subject to especially unjust outcomes in health, education, and wealth. Asset-based community development (ABCD) is a way of engaging with communities in participatory and positive ways that center community voices as expert. Youth can participate in ABCD, are sensitive to the ways in which their communities are structured, and have insights as to how to improve the places they live. We undertook a qualitative interview study which included a cognitive mapping exercise with 28 youth to understand how African American/Black youth who had participated in an ABCD-informed summer program conceptualized community and preferences about where they lived. Using a phenomenological approach to qualitative analysis, our study revealed that many youth defined community as a combination of people and place, enjoyed engaging with unique resources in their communities as well as seeking peace and quiet, experienced hardships as "something everybody knows" when observing constraints on their communities, and were committed to their communities and interested in seeing-and participating in-their flourishing. Our study provides a nuanced and contemporary understanding of the ways in which African American/Black semi-rural youth experience community which can contribute to cyclical asset-based development strategy aimed at empowering young people and improving health outcomes in resilient communities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cambray Smith
- School of Medicine, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC
- Center for Health Equity Research, Department of Social Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
| | - Leah Frerichs
- Gillings Global School of Public Health, Department of Health Policy and Management, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
| | - Stephanie Hoover
- Center for Health Equity Research, Department of Social Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
| | - Nicole Robinson-Ezekwe
- Center for Health Equity Research, Department of Social Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
| | - Anisha Khanna
- Center for Health Equity Research, Department of Social Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
| | | | - Brian Ellerby
- Opportunities Industrialization Center, Inc., Rocky Mount, NC
| | - Linda Joyner
- Opportunities Industrialization Center, Inc., Rocky Mount, NC
| | - Stacy Tessler Lindau
- Department of OB/GYN, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL
- Department of Medicine, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL
| | - Giselle Corbie
- School of Medicine, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC
- Center for Health Equity Research, Department of Social Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
- Department of Social Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
- Department of Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
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Frerichs L, Smith C, Hoover S, Robinson-Ezekwe N, Khanna A, Ellerby B, Joyner L, Wynn M, Wrenn J, Stith D, Lindau S, Corbie G. Comparative Evaluation of 2 Work Experience Approaches for Predominantly Black Youth in a Rural Community: Implications for Public Health Workforce Development. J Public Health Manag Pract 2023; 29:21-32. [PMID: 36448755 PMCID: PMC9718253 DOI: 10.1097/phh.0000000000001661] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
CONTEXT In order to create a more diverse workforce, there is a need to involve historically excluded youth in public health-related work. Youth involvement in asset-based work experience approaches is especially relevant for rural areas with workforce shortages. OBJECTIVE To explore the public health workforce development implications of community-based career exploration and asset mapping work experience from the perspective of Black youth. DESIGN We used qualitative in-depth interviews with youth, aged 14 to 22 years, who participated in a work experience program anchored in several rural counties in southeastern United States. A phenomenological lens was applied for qualitative analyses with iterative, team-based data coding. Participants were also surveyed pre- and postprogram to supplement findings. PROGRAM A rural community-based organization's work experience program consisted of 2 tracks: (1) Youth Connect-a career exploration track that included work placement within community agencies; and (2) MAPSCorps-a track that employs youth to conduct asset mapping for their community. RESULTS We interviewed 28 of 31 total participants in the 2 tracks. We uncovered 4 emergent profiles in how youth described shifts in their perceptions of community: (1) Skill Developers; (2) Community Questioners; (3) Community Observers; and (4) Community Enthusiasts. In comparing between tracks, youth who participated in work experience that involved asset mapping uniquely described increased observation and expanded view of community resources and had greater increases in research self-efficacy than youth who participated only in career exploration. CONCLUSION Asset mapping work experience that is directly placed in rural communities can expose Black youth to and engage them in essential public health services (assessing and mobilizing community assets) that impact their community. This type of program, directly integrated into rural communities rather than placed near academic centers, could play a role in creating a more diverse public health workforce.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leah Frerichs
- Gillings Global School of Public Health, Department of Health Policy and Management, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
- Center for Health Equity Research, Department of Social Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
| | - Cambray Smith
- Gillings Global School of Public Health, Department of Health Policy and Management, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
- Center for Health Equity Research, Department of Social Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
- School of Medicine, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC
| | - Stephanie Hoover
- Center for Health Equity Research, Department of Social Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
| | - Nicole Robinson-Ezekwe
- Center for Health Equity Research, Department of Social Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
| | - Anisha Khanna
- Gillings Global School of Public Health, Department of Health Policy and Management, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
- Center for Health Equity Research, Department of Social Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
| | - Brian Ellerby
- Opportunities Industrialization Center, Inc., Rocky Mount, NC
| | - Linda Joyner
- Opportunities Industrialization Center, Inc., Rocky Mount, NC
| | | | - Jonina Wrenn
- Center for Health Equity Research, Department of Social Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
| | - Doris Stith
- Community Enrichment Organization, Tarboro, NC
| | - Stacy Lindau
- Department of OB/GYN, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL
- Department of Medicine, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL
| | - Giselle Corbie
- Center for Health Equity Research, Department of Social Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
- Department of Social Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
- Department of Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC
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