Morrel-Samuels Susan, Bacallao Martica, Brown Shelli, Bower Meredith, Zimmerman Marc
School of Public Health, Michigan Youth Violence Prevention Center, University of Michigan, 1415 Washington Heights, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109-2029, USA.
North Carolina Center for Excellence in Youth Violence Prevention, The University of Kansas, Twente Hall, Lawrence, KS, 66045-3129, USA.
J Prim Prev. 2016 Apr;37(2):189-207. doi: 10.1007/s10935-016-0428-5.
The purpose of the Youth Violence Prevention Centers (YVPC) Program at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is to reduce youth violence in defined high-risk communities through the implementation and evaluation of comprehensive, evidence based prevention strategies. Within this common framework, each YVPC varies in its structure and methods, however all engage communities in multiple ways. We explore aspects of community engagement employed by three centers that operate in very different contexts: a rural county in North Carolina; a suburban area of Denver, Colorado; and an urban setting in Flint, Michigan. While previous research has addressed theories supporting community involvement in youth violence prevention, there has been less attention to the implementation challenges of achieving and sustaining participation. In three case examples, we describe the foci and methods for community engagement in diverse YVPC sites and detail the barriers and facilitating factors that have influenced implementation. Just as intervention programs may need to be adapted in order to meet the needs of specific populations, methods of community engagement must be tailored to the context in which they occur. We discuss case examples of community engagement in areas with varying geographies, histories, and racial and ethnic compositions. Each setting presents distinct challenges and opportunities for conducting collaborative violence prevention initiatives and for adapting engagement methods to diverse communities. Although approaches may vary depending upon local contexts, there are certain principles that appear to be common across cultures and geography: trust, transparency, communication, commitment. We also discuss the importance of flexibility in community engagement efforts.
美国疾病控制与预防中心的青少年暴力预防中心（YVPC）项目旨在通过实施和评估全面的、基于证据的预防策略，减少特定高风险社区中的青少年暴力行为。在这一共同框架内，每个青少年暴力预防中心的结构和方法各不相同，但都以多种方式与社区互动。我们探讨了在三种截然不同背景下运作的三个中心所采用的社区参与方式：北卡罗来纳州的一个乡村县；科罗拉多州丹佛市的一个郊区；以及密歇根州弗林特市的一个城市地区。虽然此前的研究探讨了支持社区参与青少年暴力预防的理论，但对于实现并维持参与度的实施挑战关注较少。在三个案例中，我们描述了不同青少年暴力预防中心社区参与的重点和方法，并详细说明了影响实施的障碍和促进因素。正如干预项目可能需要进行调整以满足特定人群的需求一样，社区参与方法也必须根据其所处的背景进行调整。我们讨论了在地理、历史以及种族和民族构成各不相同的地区开展社区参与的案例。每种环境在开展合作性暴力预防举措以及使参与方法适应不同社区方面都呈现出独特的挑战和机遇。虽然方法可能因当地情况而异，但某些原则似乎在不同文化和地域中都普遍适用：信任、透明度、沟通、承诺。我们还讨论了社区参与工作中灵活性的重要性。
