Siette Joyce, Anderson Emily, Catanzaro Michelle
The MARCS Institute for Brain, Behaviour and Development, Western Sydney University, Westmead, NSW, Australia.
Design, School of Humanities and Communication Arts, Western Sydney University, Rydalmere, NSW, Australia.
Front Public Health. 2024 Nov 27;12:1398925. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1398925. eCollection 2024.
Brain health interventions seek to cultivate enduring, health-promoting behaviors for an enhanced quality of life. Despite this objective, achieving sustained adoption and engagement of healthy lifestyle behaviors remains a challenge, prompting the exploration of innovative avenues for promoting brain health. The potential of integrating brain health education in younger populations is particularly promising, given the likelihood of these habits persisting into adulthood. This study thus aimed to identify parental perspectives on a performing arts-based brain health intervention for implementation in preschool settings.
Preschool parents and early learning center staff participated in three focus co-design groups ( = 12) to create a prototypical performing arts brain health intervention. Each focus group was recorded, transcribed and analyzed using deductive thematic analysis.
Three main themes for effective brain health interventions in preschool settings were identified: optimizing logistical processes to ensure efficient delivery and scalability, recognizing motivation as a central factor influencing sustained engagement across all stakeholders, and tailoring educational content with specialized explanations for children to enhance comprehension and relatability. A new implementation approach was proposed to support an arts-based brain health intervention designed for preschools.
These findings have important implications for the future of brain health education focusing on youth populations and a lifelong approach to dementia risk prevention strategies. By addressing logistical challenges, prioritizing motivation, and tailoring explanations to the unique needs of children, future programs can be more adaptable and successful in fostering positive and sustainable brain health behaviors.
大脑健康干预旨在培养持久的、促进健康的行为，以提高生活质量。尽管有这一目标，但实现健康生活方式行为的持续采用和参与仍然是一项挑战，这促使人们探索促进大脑健康的创新途径。鉴于这些习惯持续到成年的可能性，在年轻人群体中整合大脑健康教育的潜力尤其巨大。因此，本研究旨在确定家长对一种基于表演艺术的大脑健康干预措施在学前教育环境中实施的看法。
学前儿童家长和早期学习中心工作人员参加了三个焦点共同设计小组（n = 12），以创建一个基于表演艺术的大脑健康干预原型。每个焦点小组都进行了录音、转录，并使用演绎主题分析法进行了分析。
确定了在学前教育环境中有效开展大脑健康干预的三个主要主题：优化后勤流程以确保高效实施和可扩展性，认识到动机是影响所有利益相关者持续参与的核心因素，以及为儿童量身定制带有专业解释的教育内容，以提高理解度和相关性。提出了一种新的实施方法，以支持为学前教育机构设计的基于艺术的大脑健康干预。
这些发现对关注青年人群体的大脑健康教育的未来以及痴呆症风险预防策略的终身方法具有重要意义。通过应对后勤挑战、优先考虑动机以及根据儿童的独特需求调整解释，未来的项目在培养积极和可持续的大脑健康行为方面可以更具适应性和成功性。
