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Applying culturalist methodologies to discern COVID‐19's impact on communities of color
Author(s) -
Grills Cheryl,
Carlos Chavez Fiorella L.,
Saw Anne,
Walters Karina L.,
Burlew Kathleen,
Randolph Cunningham Suzanne M.,
Rosario Cristalis Capielo,
Samoa Raynald,
JacksonLowman Huberta
Publication year - 2023
Publication title -
journal of community psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.585
H-Index - 86
eISSN - 1520-6629
pISSN - 0090-4392
DOI - 10.1002/jcop.22802
Subject(s) - racism , syndemic , context (archaeology) , colonialism , sociology , praxis , ethos , pandemic , political science , covid-19 , gender studies , public health , medicine , history , infectious disease (medical specialty) , nursing , disease , archaeology , pathology , law
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) pandemic has disproportionately impacted communities of color (CoC) amid increasing incidents of racial injustices and racism. In this article, we describe our culturalist methodologies for designing and implementing a multi‐ethnic, interdisciplinary national needs assessment developed in partnership with CoC. Instead of a typical western‐centric social science approach that typically ignores and perpetuates structural racism and settler colonialism, the research team implemented culturalist and community‐partnered approaches that were further contextualized to the context of structural racism and settler colonialism. The culturalist approach yielded two sets of themes both related to the impact of the pandemic on CoC. The first set involved syndemic factors that contribute to the adverse impact of COVID‐19. These include historical trauma; racism, racial stress, and discrimination; and cultural mistrust. The second set consisted of factors that potentially mitigate the impact of the COVID‐19. These include cultural protective factors; community engagement; communal ethos, and data disaggregation. Our methodologies and the resulting findings encourage research praxis that uplifts the shared effects of the social determinants of health while honoring unique cultural and contextual experiences—a lesson that social science researchers largely have yet to learn.