Open AccessEvidence, Power, and Policy Change in Community-Based Participatory Research
Author(s) -
Nicholas Freudenberg,
Emma K. Tsui
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
american journal of public health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.284
H-Index - 264
eISSN - 1541-0048
pISSN - 0090-0036
DOI - 10.2105/ajph.2013.301471
Subject(s) - participatory action research , health policy , citizen journalism , political science , power (physics) , population health , community based participatory research , evidence based policy , scientific evidence , politics , public relations , public health , population , public economics , environmental health , economic growth , medicine , economics , alternative medicine , nursing , epistemology , quantum mechanics , pathology , law , philosophy , physics
Meaningful improvements in health require modifying the social determinants of health. As policies are often underlying causes of the living conditions that shape health, policy change becomes a health goal. This focus on policy has led to increasing interest in expanding the focus of community-based participatory research (CBPR) to change not only communities but also policies. To best realize this potential, the relationship between evidence and power in policy change must be more fully explored. Effective action to promote policies that improve population health requires a deeper understanding of the roles of scientific evidence and political power in bringing about policy change; the appropriate scales for policy change, from community to global; and the participatory processes that best acknowledge the interplay between power and evidence.