Community engagement in dissemination and implementation models: A narrative review

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Implementation Science
• Community-Based Research

Background:

• Growing demand for understanding the adoption of evidence-based interventions (EBIs).
• Numerous dissemination and implementation (D&I) models exist to address this demand.
• Need for community-specific constructs to guide researcher-community engagement in D&I.

Purpose of the Study:

• Identify community-specific constructs within D&I models.
• Enhance researcher engagement with community partners in D&I studies.
• Facilitate the deployment of EBIs through community partnerships.

Main Methods:

• Systematic review of 74 D&I models published between 2012 and 2020.
• Building upon a previous review of 51 D&I models up to 2012.
• Independent coding by three experts to identify community engagement constructs.

Main Results:

• Five community engagement constructs were identified: Communication, Partnership Exchange, Community Capacity Building, Leadership, and Collaboration.
• A significant portion of models (20%) incorporated all five constructs.
• Few new D&I models with strong community focus have emerged since 2009.

Conclusions:

• The study bridges community-engaged research and D&I literature.
• Identified constructs can guide the development and application of D&I models.
• Findings offer implications for future research and practice in community-engaged D&I.