Mobilizing the community through community-based participatory research in Brazilian churches

Community-based participatory research (CBPR) emerged from an amalgamation of action research and community empowerment and encourages active participation of the community in the entire research process. The purpose of this study was to assess an approach used by researchers conducting CBPR. Researchers have been working since 2005 to establish long-range, CBPR partnerships with Baptist churches in Brazil. In 2006, four students joined the researchers to continue implementing CBPR principles in Brazilian churches. The research team met with local health professionals and community stakeholders for professional and social events to build stronger relationships with and among community members. Moderately-scheduled telephone interviews were conducted with a total of six American and Brazilian stakeholders. These interviews are consistent with principles of CBPR as promoting collaborations, building community capacity, and compiling health status improvement data from community stakeholders. Grounded theory was used to identify emerging themes from the interviews. A two-round, Policy Delphi technique was employed to further involve community partners in the collection and dissemination of findings. A survey was e-mailed to stakeholders to agree or disagree with themes that emerged from this process. Delphi results revealed that stakeholders believe the research team was well-received within the community and that these grassroots efforts were effective at addressing community needs. Capacity of churches and future organizational partnerships emerged as themes along with a desire for continued collaboration with the research team. CBPR can be beneficial in that it can yield more detailed data for researchers to create more lasting positive changes for the community.