An ethnographic protocol for determining self-defined community boundaries as the basis for an immigrant Latino health disparities intervention

BACKGROUND: Building on data and results from SAFER Latinos, a CDC-funded, community intervention to prevent youth violence in the Latino immigrant community of Langley Park, MD, the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services was recently awarded an exploratory health disparities center grant from the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities. Center activities include an expanded intervention (called ADELANTE) conducted in the same Latino community to address the co-occurrence of substance abuse, violence and sex risk within the youth (12-17 years) and young adult (18-24 years) population. Knowing that this community has grown beyond the available Census data used in evaluating the SAFER Latinos intervention, the ADELANTE research team developed and implemented an innovative ethnographic protocol for eliciting self-defined, and more current, community borders and population information.

METHODS: Beginning with the original Census designated place (CDP) maps as a core, we first mapped service data from partner community organizations for individuals reporting Langley Park residence. This first (GIS) mapping effort indicated that Langley Park residence included areas beyond the CDP boundaries. Next, an ethnographic team including public health professionals and anthropology graduate students conducted multiple visits to the community, collecting descriptive data on the “community” areas falling outside of the CDP boundaries and conducting interviews with residents to assess the geographic extent of self-defined Langley Park residence.

RESULTS: This information was used to create new community boundaries, which are now the basis for the evaluation sampling plan as well as intervention coverage and outreach planning.