ERIC Number: EJ1397408
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2023
Pages: 19
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0965-0792
EISSN: EISSN-1747-5074
Involving Student Peer Researchers for Gender-Informed Health Promotion: A Community-Based Participatory Action Research
Chen, Shu-Ping; Horgan, Salinda; Jones, John; Krauss, Elisha; Stuart, Heather
Educational Action Research, v31 n3 p521-539 2023
Alcohol use is prevalent among post-secondary students and negatively impacts their academic achievement. Socially constructed gender-based perceptions can promote alcohol misuse on campus. This is a community-based participatory action research aiming to raise awareness of alcohol use and its relation to gender, bridge campus networks targeting alcohol misuse, and develop a sustainable health promotion intervention. Twelve student-peer researchers from two Canadian universities led the project during the 2017-2018 school year. One multi-phased health promotion initiative consisting of poster/video campaigns, a health promotion website, and on-campus events, was implemented on each campus. Student leadership was empowered through the Action Research Cycle and Fletcher's Ladder of Student Involvement. Data were collected through field notes, activity logs, and semi-structured interviews. A thematic analysis determined that student-peer researchers experienced a sense of accomplishment, empowerment, greater interest in the topic, and a desire to sustain the project, but faced challenges regarding the initiative structures, inter-researcher communication, and teamwork distribution. The results demonstrated that both initiatives successfully reached broad student bodies and increased student awareness of alcohol misuse. This intervention addressed culturally manifested drinking norms and demonstrated effective student-led participatory action research. However, the findings were unique to the specific campus culture and may be of limited generalizability.
Descriptors: Student Research, Gender Differences, Health Promotion, Action Research, Participatory Research, Substance Abuse, College Students, Alcohol Abuse, Foreign Countries, Health Education, Program Effectiveness, Social Behavior, Local Norms, Drinking
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Canada
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A