Learning Activity – COPAR

This section is about participatory action research: what it is, why it can be effective, who might
use it, and how to set up and conduct it.

Della Roberts worked as a nutritionist at the Harperville Hospital. As an African American, she
was concerned about obesity among black children, and about the fact that many of
Harperville’s African American neighborhoods didn’t have access to healthy food in stores or
restaurants. She felt that the city ought to be doing something to change the situation, but
officials didn’t seem to see it as a problem. Della decided to conduct some research to use as a
base for advocacy.

Della realized that in order to collect accurate data, she needed to find researchers who would
be trusted by people in the neighborhoods she was concerned about. What if she recruited
researchers from among the people in those neighborhoods? She contacted two ministers she
knew, an African American doctor who practiced in a black neighborhood, and the director of a
community center, as well as using her own family connections. Within two weeks, she had
gathered a group of neighborhood residents who were willing to act as researchers. They
ranged from high school students to grandparents, and from people who could barely read to
others who had taken college courses.

The group met several times at the hospital to work out how they were going to collect
information from the community. Della conducted workshops in research methods and in such
basic skills as how to record interviews and observations. The group discussed the problem of
recording for those who had difficulty writing, and came up with other ways of logging
information. They decided they would each interview a given number of residents about their
food shopping and eating habits, and that they would also observe people’s buying patterns in
neighborhood stores and fast food restaurants. They set a deadline for finishing their data
gathering, and went off to learn as much as they could about the food shopping and eating
behavior of people in their neighborhoods.

As the data came in, it became clear that people in the neighborhoods would be happy to buy
more nutritious food, but it was simply too difficult to get it. They either had to travel long
distances on the bus, since many didn’t have cars, or find time after a long work day to drive to
another, often unfamiliar, part of the city and spend an evening shopping. Many also had the
perception that healthy food was much more expensive, and that they couldn’t afford it.

Ultimately, the data that the group of neighborhood residents had gathered went into a report
written by Della and other professionals on the hospital staff. The report helped to convince the
city to provide incentives to supermarket chains to locate in neighborhoods where healthy food
was hard to find.
The group that Della had recruited had become a community-based participatory research
team. Working with Della and others at the hospital, they helped to determine what kind of
information would be useful, and then learned how to gather it. Because they were part of the
community, they were trusted by residents; because they shared other residents’ experience,
they knew what questions to ask and fully understood the answers, as well as what they were
seeing when they observed.

QUESTIONS:

1. Which part of the story is the core group formation if any?

This is where it involves development of a local planning committee. Where in Della Roberts
and the group of the researccers met several times at the hospital to work out how they were
going to collect information from the community. The group also discussed the problem of
recording for those who had difficulty writing, and came up with other ways of logging
information. After that, they decided they would each interview a given number of residents
about their food shopping and eating habits, and that they would also observe people’s buying
patterns in neighborhood stores and fast food restaurants. They set a deadline for finishing
their data gathering, and went off to learn as much as they could about the food shopping and
eating behavior of people in their neighborhoods.

2. Is health promotion and prevention portrayed in the story? If yes, how? If no, Why?
Yes, because Della Roberts is promoting nutritious food to Harperville’s African American
neighborhoods who didn’t have access to healthy food in stores or restaurants. This is a health
promotion where in promoting nutritious food to the people as well as helping them prevent
obesity. For the reason that the neighborhoods couldn't afford it and difficult to get it. This is
like 2 in 1 for promoting nutritious food to prevent obesity.

3. Identify activities in the entry phase and organizational building phase that is demonstrated
in the story. Discuss your answers.
It involves major organizing task designed to raise consciousness among the poor regarding
their community situation, it is where Della Roberts felt that the city ought to be doing
something to change the situation, but officials didn’t seem to see it as a problem.Therefore,
Della decided to conduct some research to use as a base for advocacy. For organizational
building phase it is where the election and induction of officers of people’s organization where
in Della find researchers who would be trusted by people in the neighborhoods.

4. Which parts of the story demonstrate community consultation if any and how?
This is where the group met several times at the hospital to work out how they were going to
collect information from the community as well as to discussed the problem of recording for
those who had difficulty writing, and came up with other ways of logging information. With the
team working together they helped each other to determine what kind of information would be
useful, and then learned how to gather it.
5. Which part of the story integration is demonstrated and how was it portrayed in the story?
This is where Della immerses herself as one of the citizen in that community where he helps to
determine the problem and identify solutions that can help to ease or solved the problem in
the community.

6. What is the importance of community consultation? Can we see that in the story being
implemented? Cite the part of the story if any?
Community Consultation is important because through community consultation you will be able to
determine the issues or problems that are happening within the community and will be able to think of
a best solution. We can observe the community consultation in the story wher Della recruited
researcher that are residents in that community so that those researcher are the one who are going to
conduct the interview regarding the issues or problems of the residence in that community.

7. What roles of the organizer can be seen in the story and how was it portrayed?
The roles of the organizer it to get to know the culture, economy, leaders, history, rhythms and
lifestyle of the community where in Della engages herself in that community and was able to
observe and identify their
problem also as African American, she was concerned about obesity among black children.
Furthermore, organizers are the one to identify the key persons, opinion leaders and deviants
or isolates in the community as well
as they are the one to get the indigenous leaders to express their support for the program
where Della she contacted two ministers she knew, an African American doctor who practiced
in a black neighborhood, and the director of a community center, as well as using her own
family connections and within two weeks, she had gathered a group of neighborhood residents
who were willing to act as researchers.

8. Is the research phase/Deepening of social investigation can be found in the story? What is
your basis?
Yes, this is where the group that Della had recruited had become a community-based
participatory research team to gather more data without existing or locals datas to be based
on. Where in they helped to determine what kind of information would be useful, and then
learned how to gather it because they were part of the community, they were trusted by
residents.

9. What is the title of the conducted research?

Promotion of nutritious food to prevent obesity.

10. What was the conclusion of the research?

The conclusion is that with the help of data gathering it became clear that people in the
neighborhoods would be happy to buy more nutritious food, but it was simply too difficult to
get it with different reasons as well as many had the perception that healthy food was much
more expensive, and that they couldn’t afford it. Moreover, with the help of the data that the
group of neighborhood residents had gathered went into a report written by Della and other
professionals on the hospital staff. The report helped to convince the city to provide incentives
to supermarket chains to locate in neighborhoods where healthy food was hard to find.

11. Base on the story and the lesson we tackled about COPAR what is the take away ?