Using Community-based Participatory Research and ethnographic methods to assess a rural community

Background: The purpose of this interdisciplinary study is to identify ecological, cultural, and contextual factors influencing adolescent lifestyles in a rural tobacco-producing community using multiple participatory methods as a basis for developing and testing an intervention to prevent youth substance use. Methods: This study combines community based participatory research (CBPR) and ethnographic approaches with Geographic Information Systems (GIS) mapping, and Photovoice to conduct an ecological, commu-nity, and environmental assessment of a rural, ethnically diverse Virginia county. A “Model of CBPR and Ehnographic Orientations” guided the study. With IRB approval from three institutions, a community participatory research team (CPRT) of community leaders (n=4), parents (n=8), youth (n=8), and investigators (n=5) is conducting assessment activities and reviewing findings for relevance to develop a youth substance use preventive intervention. The CPRT meets monthly to select questions from assessment domains: community core/history, physical environment, social systems, idea systems, and behavior systems. The CPRT directs recruitment of youth, parents, and community leaders for group and individual interviews. Results: The process of assessing local knowledge, GIS mapping of critical data, and describing the community through pictures will facilitate subsequent study phases, designing and testing a culturally relevant program to prevent substance use based on community studies with effectiveness data and to reach minority and majority rural youth. Conclusions: Local knowledge of the community provides a rich understanding of substance nonuse and use; circumstances surrounding substance use activities; and the local environment, traditions, beliefs, and attitudes toward tobacco, alcohol, and other drug use and non drug-related behaviors.