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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Michele A. Schermann, RN, MS¹, Penny Bartz, RN, MPH¹, MaiKia Moua, RN, PHN, MPH¹, John M. Shutske, PhD², PaChia Vue, MPH¹, and Tou Thai Lee, MPH¹. (1) Agricultural Safety and Health Program, University of Minnesota, 1390 Eckles Ave, St. Paul, MN 55108-6005, 612-624-7444, scher019@umn.edu, (2) Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Department, University of Minnesota, 1390 Eckles Ave, St. Paul, MN 55108-6005

The Hmong have an oral tradition; spoken stories teach about heritage, and personal and social values. Most Hmong folktales end with a lesson or moral that listeners can apply to their own lives. Three stories in the book “Orphan Boy the Farmer” illustrate hazards, behaviors, consequences, and control strategies related to farm work assigned to Hmong children. The book depicts safe practices when using rototillers, knives and handtools, and when working at the markets. The lesson/moral learned in the stories is that the farmer intentionally practices healthy and safe farming to protect himself and his family and thus is successful in life. PURPOSE: Evaluate the effectiveness of storytelling as a method of conveying safety information to Hmong farmers and promote safe work behaviors for parents and their children. METHODS: Storytelling was conducted in Hmong to six different Hmong farming audiences at events in Minnesota and Wisconsin. Following the storytellings, 107 farmers participated in focus group discussions about their general reactions to and what they learned from the safety folktales. DATA ANALYSIS: This study used focus groups conducted in Hmong by experienced Hmong focus group moderators. Interview transcripts were translated into English by the moderators and were analyzed using computer assisted qualitative text analysis software. RESULTS: Participants were able to recount story content pertaining to safety and talk about their experiences dealing with farming hazards. Storytelling was an appealing delivery method for most of the participants. Analysis of the storytelling performances showed that several aspects of the performance influence its effectiveness.

Learning Objectives:

• --List three aspects of storytelling that influence effectiveness.
• --Describe the value of storytelling / safety folktales in a cultural capacity.
• --Identify one potential application of storytelling in a practice setting.

Keywords: Agricultural Work Safety, Literacy

Related Web page: safety.coafes.umn.edu/

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No