Community-Based Research Commons^™

“Holla If You Hear Me”: A Conversation With Black, Inner-City Youth On Career Preparedness Programs, Theressa N. Cooper

Doctoral Dissertations

This research study specifically addressed; how vocational preparedness programs effect the career aspirations of Black youth, within the context of the Middle Tennessee Council Boy Scouts of America’s Exploring program. The goal of this research is to represent Black youth participating in a vocational preparedness program. Interviews, journals, and rich, thick descriptions are utilized in this work.

Using the lens of narrative inquiry and cultural studies, I hoped to further the field of career development through the experiences of some of its key players, African American youth. Within the context of their stories five major themes surfaced around the ideas: …

Developing The Sacred: Local & Global Bikas In The Nepali Bhotkhola, Clayton Andrew Roger Hawkins Lewis

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The purpose of this paper is to study the effects of bikas on community and culture. Research was conducted from 9-30 November 2010 in the Bhotia village Chyamtang in the Sankhuwasabha district of Northeastern Nepal. The forms of development observed at the site are separated into local bikas and global bikas, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. Research focused on a two-year old development project initiated by The Mountain Institute (TMI) using medicinal plant cultivation and community participation. Methods for studying Bhotia culture and development took the form of interviews with local healers, religious figures, farmers, and TMI …

The Relationship Between Breastfeeding And Child Care For Working Mothers In The United States, Patricia Wonch Hill

Department of Sociology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Whether or not child care provider characteristics and factors related to the care giving environment impact breastfeeding duration for working mothers has not been systematically studied. In this dissertation, I use Ecological Health Promotion Theory to explore the relationship between child care and breastfeeding through three different analyses. First, I interviewed nine child care providers to assess their knowledge, attitudes and beliefs about infant feeding and whether they vary on these factors across individuals and child care licensing types. Second, I conducted a small mail survey of 93 licensed child care providers in order to create a scale measuring attitudes …

Assessing The Feasibility Of Home Administration Of Misoprostol In The Prevention Of Postpartum Hemorrhage In Rural Pakistan, Ali M. Mir, Abdul Wajid, Sadaf Gull

Reproductive Health

This report details an operations research project carried out by the Population Council as part of the Pakistan Initiative for Mothers and Newborns. The overall goal of the project was to test the feasibility of administering misoprostol for the prevention of postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) in a home setting through community‐based healthcare providers, including traditional birth attendants (TBAs), or family members, in two districts of Pakistan. Furthermore, it aimed to identify common side effects of misoprostol and determine the reduction in demand for referral due to PPH after oral ingestion of misoprostol. The results provide a useful addition to the literature …

Rural Community Longevity: Capitalizing On Diversity For Immigrant Residential Stability, Rochelle L. Dalla, Tammy R. Stuhmer, Jennifer G. Deleón, Maria Isabel León Carreño

Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies: Faculty Publications

The premise of this research is that rural immigrants comprise a significant source of untapped human and social capital necessary for community development. However, to capitalize on the growing ethnic diversity in rural America, immigrant newcomers must want to stay in their new rural communities. This investigation was designed to identify factors necessary to enhance rural Latino immigrants’ long-term residential stability. Thus, we sought to: (1) identify perceptions of rural residence, with particular attention to employment opportunities and challenges; (2) assess formal support availability and community issues of greatest concern to rural Latinas; and (3) identify strategies for creating bi-cultural …

Brief Report: Activities And Achievements Of The P4p Project—Introducing Pay-For-Performance (P4p) Approach To Increase Utilization Of Maternal, Newborn, And Child Health Services In Bangladesh, Population Council

Reproductive Health

A pilot study was initiated in Bangladesh for testing Pay-for-Performance for providers and clients in improving maternal, newborn, and child health (MNCH) services by addressing supply and demand-side barriers. With funding from UNICEF, the Population Council provided technical assistance for the operations research study implemented by the Directorate General of Health Services, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare of the Government of Bangladesh. Necessary and key human resource placement and training on integrated management of childhood illness, emergency operations centers, newborn care, infection prevention, and waste management are important for better performance in all facilities. In spite of existing barriers, …

Assessing The Potential Acceptability Of A New Cadre Of Community Midwives For Pregnancy And Delivery Related Care In Rural Pakistan: Findings From A Qualitative Study, Abdul Wajid, Ali M. Mir, Zubaida Rashid, Abida Aziz

Reproductive Health

The Population Council designed an operations research study to assess the potential acceptability of a new cadre of community midwives (CMWs) for pregnancy and delivery-related care in rural Pakistan. Specific objectives of the study were to determine the need for skilled birth attendants, identify any misconceptions in the community about CMWs, determine levels of acceptance in the community, and explore barriers to the placement of CMWs in the community. The report recommends sensitizing family members so they are more willing to grant permission for pregnant women to consult CMWs, developing flexible fee structures, giving clients greater accessibility, building a network …

Communalism Predicts Prenatal Affect, Stress, And Physiology Better Than Ethnicity And Socioeconomic Status, Cleopatra M. Abdou, Christine Dunkel Schetter, Belinda Campos, Clayton J. Hilmert, Tyan Parker Dominguez, Calvin J. Hobel, Laura M. Glynn, Curt A. Sandman

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

The authors examined the relevance of communalism, operationalized as a cultural orientation emphasizing interdependence, to maternal prenatal emotional health and physiology and distinguished its effects from those of ethnicity and childhood and adult socioeconomic status (SES). African American and European American women (N = 297) were recruited early in pregnancy and followed through 32 weeks gestation using interviews and medical chart review. Overall, African American women and women of lower socioeconomic backgrounds had higher levels of negative affect, stress, and blood pressure, but these ethnic and socioeconomic disparities were not observed among women higher in communalism. Hierarchical multivariate regression analyses …