Complexity and Community Context: Learning from the Evaluation Design of a National Community Empowerment Programme

Community empowerment interventions, which aim to build greater individual and community control over health, are shaped by the community systems in which they are implemented. Drawing on complex systems thinking in public health research, this paper discusses the evaluation approach used for a UK c...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of environmental research and public health 2019-12, Vol.17 (1), p.91
Main Authors: South, Jane, Button, Daniel, Quick, Annie, Bagnall, Anne-Marie, Trigwell, Joanne, Woodward, Jenny, Coan, Susan, Southby, Kris
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Case studies
Collective action
Community ecology
Complex systems
Design
Empowerment
Ethics
Health disparities
Humans
Intervention
Medical research
Neighborhoods
Program Development
Program Evaluation
Public health
Research methodology
Vulnerable Populations
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Summary:Community empowerment interventions, which aim to build greater individual and community control over health, are shaped by the community systems in which they are implemented. Drawing on complex systems thinking in public health research, this paper discusses the evaluation approach used for a UK community empowerment programme focused on disadvantaged neighbourhoods. It explores design choices and the tension between the overall enquiry questions, which were based on a programme theory of change, and the varied dynamic socio-cultural contexts in intervention communities. The paper concludes that the complexity of community systems needs to be accounted for through in-depth case studies that incorporate community perspectives.
ISSN:1660-4601
1661-7827
1660-4601
DOI:10.3390/ijerph17010091