Related Experiment Videos
House Chats as a Grassroots Engagement Methodology in Community-Based Participatory Research: The WE Project,
Abstract:
The Wellness Engagement (WE) Project is an academic-community partnership developed to engage the community to inform the development of a pilot intervention aimed at promoting healthy eating and physical activity among residents of Petersburg, Virginia.
Objectives:
To implement House Chats as a novel methodology for engaging community members in focused discussion about obesity, exercise, dietary intake, and barriers to health.
Methods:
We recruited and trained laypersons as House Chat Leaders (HCLs) to host informal group discussions about obesity with members of their network in a social setting following predetermined questions.
Results:
HCLs hosted 34 House Chats with 176 participants over a period of 4 months.
Conclusions:
The House Chat proved to be a highly successful engagement strategy that allowed access to respondents who may not have participated in a traditional, focus group discussion.