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The Impact of Comprehensive Community Initiatives on Population‐Level Child, Youth, and Family Outcomes: A Systematic Review
Author(s) -
Lin Emily S.,
Flanagan Sean K.,
Varga Shan M.,
Zaff Jonathan F.,
Margolius Max
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
american journal of community psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.113
H-Index - 112
eISSN - 1573-2770
pISSN - 0091-0562
DOI - 10.1002/ajcp.12398
Subject(s) - intervention (counseling) , health psychology , prevention science , population , inclusion (mineral) , psychology , systematic review , evidence based practice , public health , set (abstract data type) , medicine , clinical psychology , applied psychology , gerontology , medline , environmental health , psychiatry , alternative medicine , nursing , political science , social psychology , computer science , pathology , law , programming language
Comprehensive community initiatives ( CCI s) represent a popular method for creating systemic change, yet there is a dearth of evidence on their effectiveness (Zaff, Pufall Jones, Donlan, Lin, & Anderson, 2016). This article presents a systematic review of the evidence on the population‐level impact of CCI s, focusing specifically on documented effects from studies using an experimental or quasi‐experimental design. Of 1,947 articles identified through a database and hand search, 25 articles examining six different CCI s—most of which employed prevention science frameworks—met the review inclusion criteria. The results of this review show that CCI s can strengthen protective factors and reduce risk factors, delay initiation of and reduce substance use, and reduce the likelihood of, and delay engagement in, violent and/or delinquent behaviors. Impacts have been documented as soon as one year after initial intervention, and as early as 7 th grade, with effects sustained as long as seven years post‐intervention, and as late as a year post‐high school. However, relative to the prevalence of CCI s as a practical intervention, the evidence base is small, potentially dated, and focused on a narrow set of outcomes and populations. Recommendations for interpreting the evidence base are discussed, including methodological limitations and implications for future work.