Built Environment
Conditions
Keywords
built environment, implementation science
Brief summary
The study is evaluating the effectiveness of an implementation strategy called Neighborhood Connect, which is designed to support residents' engagement in activities that improve the attractiveness, safety and livability of Worcester, MA neighborhoods. The program focuses on the built environment (i.e., the human-made, physical surroundings of Worcester neighborhoods including indoor public places and outdoor spaces like parks, streets and sidewalks) and aims to build capacity of community members to strengthen their neighborhoods. Participants will include residents and others who care about local built environment conditions. Neighborhood Connect is delivered by a built environment specialist from the local health department in collaboration with a statewide coalition.
Detailed description
The study is the core research project of the Prevention Research Center at UMass Chan. Under the guidance of a Community Advisory Board, the program aims to build capacity of the local health department and local residents to influence built environment change in neighborhoods. The program includes a training and technical assistance approach. The local health department built environment specialist learns about the built environment and how to determine how related decisions are made. The built environment specialist delivers the Zoom-based group program for residents. This six session training and technical assistance model includes 3 components: Connect with Community, Connect with Environment and Connect with Process. Through Neighborhood Connect's structured learning and applied activities, participants: Strengthen interpersonal connections and social networks within neighborhoods, Explore their neighborhoods and identify their priorities for change or improvement, Learn how decision-making processes affect their communities and Collaborate on ideas for small-scale neighborhood improvements. The implementation strategy is being evaluated in a mixed methods study. Through a stepped wedge design with 8 waves (neighborhood/area) rolled out in 4 steps (2 neighborhoods/areas per wave), the resident-focused component of Neighborhood Connect is being evaluated. Both the resident and health department components are being evaluated using qualitative methods.
Interventions
OTHERNeighborhood Connect
Neighborhood Connect is an implementation strategy designed to prepare participants to make built environment changes that promote healthy communities, including social connectedness, physical activity, traffic safety, etc. The program is generic and allows participants to identify their own priorities for built environment change. The curriculum includes six Zoom-based educational sessions delivered by a built environment specialist with a member of a walking coalition, participation in a neighborhood audit, creation of a plan for change and ability to receive technical assistance after the formal program is completed. The built environment specialist receives training and technical assistance for leading the resident-focused implementation strategy.
Sponsors
University of Massachusetts, Worcester
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
SEQUENTIAL
Primary purpose
OTHER
Masking
NONE
Intervention model description
The study uses a stepped wedge design, with 8 different clusters (neighborhoods/areas) rolled out sequentially in 4 waves.
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* Live, work or have other connection to specific areas of Worcester, MA; * Speak English or Spanish
Exclusion criteria
* Don't speak English or Spanish; * Have a cognitive deficit that precludes participation
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Built environment actions | Baseline, 3 months, 12 months | 12 item investigator developed measure based on the Expert Consensus for Local Implementation of Physical Activity Policy, Systems and Environment (ECLIPPSE) strategies, specifically focusing on action domains. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Collective Efficacy | Baseline, 3 months, 12 months | 5 item investigator developed survey to assess perceived collective efficacy for making built environment changes |
| Collective Behavioral Capability | Baseline, 3 months, 12 months | 3-item investigator developed survey assessing perceived collective behavioral capability for built environment change |
| Perceived Impact of Built Environment Change | Baseline, 3 months, 12 months | 12 item investigator developed survey of the perceived impact of built environment changes |
Countries
United States
Contacts
CONTACTStephenie C Lemon, PhD, MS
PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATORStephenie C Lemon, PhD, MS
University of Massachusetts, Worcester
Outcome results
None listed