Developing the Tribal Resource Guide and the Poverty and Culture Training: The We RISE (Raising Income, Supporting Education) Study

The Collaborative Research Center for American Indian Health's Partnership River of Life: Special Issue Introduction

In 2012, the National Institutes of Health funded the Collaborative Research Center for American Indian Health (CRCAIH) to work toward two broad goals: 1) to build tribal research infrastructure, and 2) to increase research on social determinants of health in American Indian communities. As the introduction to this special issue of American Indian and Alaska Native Mental Health Research, we highlight results from the Partnership River of Life evaluation tool in order to provide broader context for the other manuscripts presented here. Insights were gained during the Partnership River of Life group discussion and evaluation process of combining the groups' rivers to create one representation of the CRCAIH partnership. Detailed results underscore insights for similar transdisciplinary groups.

A Transdisciplinary Approach is Essential to Community-based Research with American Indian Populations

Social determinants of health and their effects on health outcomes create a complex system, with interaction between social, economic, physical, and biological factors necessitating research take a holistic approach. Transdisciplinary research, one of the three core values of the Collaborative Research Center for American Indian Health, seeks to go beyond methods of knowledge production occurring solely within disciplinary boundaries, because real-world societal problems do not adhere to such restrictions. Community involvement is an essential component for successful research partnerships with American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) communities. We posit that transdisciplinary approaches, which considers community-level expertise as an equitable component on the research team, show great potential for advancing research in AI/AN communities.

Using Goal Setting and Attainment to Impact Indicators of Health Behavior Change among Young American Indian Women: The We RISE (Raising Income, Supporting Education) Study

The purpose of the present study was to assess the association between setting and attaining goals and indicators of health behavior change (psychological general well-being index, self-efficacy, and health locus of control) among young American Indian mothers. A total of 60 women were randomized to either intervention or control. At the end of the 6-month intervention, goal attainment was not significantly associated with the three outcomes of interest. However, resource program contacts and goal track were associated with confidence in completing goals and health locus of control internality, respectively. Lessons learned and future research needs are discussed.