Principles for establishing trust when developing a substance abuse intervention with a Native American community

Area of Science:

• Community-based participatory research
• Adolescent health
• Native American studies

Background:

• Research with Native American communities requires culturally sensitive approaches.
• Community-based participatory research (CBPR) is a valuable framework for such endeavors.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the development of a research project focused on adolescent substance abuse within a Native American community.
• To highlight the guiding principles for ethical and effective community-engaged research.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach.
• Employed four key principles to guide project development and implementation.

Main Results:

• The project, "Community Partnership to Affect Cherokee Adolescent Substance Abuse," was developed through a collaborative process.
• The research underscored the critical importance of trust-building in partnerships with Native American communities.

Conclusions:

• Building trust is paramount for successful research collaborations with Native American communities.
• The CBPR approach, guided by specific principles, facilitates effective community-academic partnerships.