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Understanding Member Engagement Through Participation And Commitment In A Community-Based Health Coalition, 1994-2008: A Mixed-Methodological Study, Christopher Scott Holliday

Psychology Dissertations

Community coalitions are prime vehicles for fostering social support within communities and prominent mechanisms for building local capacities to address health and social concerns. However, sustaining these entities beyond initial efforts and funding is difficult. What has kept members participating in and committed to the work of the Clarkston (Georgia) Health Collaborative, a community coalition, nearly 15 years after its inception? Prior research has examined several variables that predict overall participation and commitment in community-based coalitions, however, the literature has largely focused on coalitions that are topic driven (e.g., diabetes, gang violence, drugs, or obesity). These studies fail to identify …