Partnering with older adults for digital research tool development: Demystifying an engaged research process
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
The inadequacy of traditional research methods, underscored by the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighted the urgent need for innovative approaches, particularly to research involving older adults. This article reflects on the complexities of establishing and sustaining research partnerships with older adults for digital research tool testing and development. The article offers an explicit report of the outreach process for holding researchers accountable and demystifying the research process.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors who submit articles to this journal from 31st March 2014 for publication, agree to the following terms:
a) Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share and adapt the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
b) Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
c) Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Open Access Citation Advantage Service). Where authors include such a work in an institutional repository or on their website (ie. a copy of a work which has been published in a UTS ePRESS journal, or a pre-print or post-print version of that work), we request that they include a statement that acknowledges the UTS ePRESS publication including the name of the journal, the volume number and a web-link to the journal item.
d) Authors should be aware that the Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) License permits readers to share (copy and redistribute the work in any medium or format) and adapt (remix, transform, and build upon the work) for any purpose, even commercially, provided they also give appropriate credit to the work, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. They may do these things in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests you or your publisher endorses their use.
For Volume 6 (2013) and before, the following copyright applied:
Articles published by UTSePress are protected by copyright which is retained by the authors who assert their moral rights. Authors control translation and reproduction rights to their works published by UTSePress. UTSePress publications are copyright and all rights are reserved worldwide. Downloads of specific portions of them are permitted for personal use only, not for commercial use or resale. Permissions to reprint or use any materials should be directed to UTSePress.
References
Baker, S. and Meletzke, A., 2021. Prioritizing partnership: Critical steps towards relationship development for sustaining community-university partnerships. Gateways: International Journal of Community Research and Engagement, 14(1), pp.1-10.
Bromley, E., Mikesell, L., Jones, F. and Khodyakov, D., 2015. From subject to participant: Ethics and the evolving role of community in health research. American journal of public health, 105(5), pp.900-908.
Burton, AM, Davis, JL and Brennan, ML 2024, Reciprocity and Redistribution: Methodologies for Rethinking Public and Community-based Humanities Research. In The Routledge Companion to Public Humanities Scholarship. Routledge.
Caine, V & Mill J 2016, Essentials of community-based research, Routledge.
Carrión-Mero, P, Morante-Carballo, F, Herrera-Franco, G, Jaya-Montalvo, M, Rodríguez, D,
Loor-Flores de Valgas, C & Berrezueta, E 2021, ‘Community-university partnership in water education and linkage process. Study case: Manglaralto, Santa Elena, Ecuador’, Water, vol. 13, no. 15, pp. 1-25. https://doi.org/10.3390/w13151998
Compare, C, Albanesi, C & Pieri, C 2022, ‘Community-university partnership in service-learning: Voicing the community side’, Journal of Higher Education Outreach and Engagement, vol. 26, no. 2, pp. 79-102. https://openjournals.libs.uga.edu/jheoe/article/view/2596
Dong, X, Chang, ES, Simon, M & Wong, E, 2011, ‘Sustaining community-university partnerships: Lessons learned from a participatory research project with elderly Chinese’, Gateways: International Journal of Community Research and Engagement, vol. 4, pp. 31-47. https://doi.org/10.5130/ijcre.v4i0.1767
Fitzgerald, HE, Karen, B, Sonka, ST, Furco, A & Swanson, L 2019, ‘The centrality of engagement in higher education’, In LR Sandmann & DO Jones (eds), Building the Field of Higher Education Engagement, Routledge, New York, NY, pp. 201-219. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003443353
Flicker, S, Savan, B, McGrath, M, Kolenda, B & Mildenberger, M 2008, ‘‘If you could change one thing…’ What community-based researchers wish they could have done differently’, Community Development Journal, vol. 43, no. 2, pp. 239-253. https://doi.org/10.1093/cdj/bsm009
Godderis, R & Root, J 2023, ‘Centering reciprocity and accountability in community-based research: How meaningful relationships with a community advisory group impacted survey Development. Engaged Scholar Journal, vol. 9 no 1, pp.77-85.
Hall, A.K., Bernhardt, J.M., Dodd, V. and Vollrath, M.W., 2015. The digital health divide: evaluating online health information access and use among older adults. Health Education & Behavior, 42(2), pp.202-209.
Hallinger, P 2014, ‘Reviewing reviews of research in educational leadership: An empirical assessment’, Educational Administration Quarterly, vol. 50, no. 4, pp. 539–576. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013161X13506594
Halseth, G, Markey, S, Ryser, L & Manson, D 2016, Doing community-based research: Perspectives from the field. McGill-Queen's Press, Montreal, QC.
Hart, A. and Northmore, S., 2011. Auditing and evaluating university–community engagement: Lessons from a UK case study. Higher Education Quarterly, 65(1), pp.34-58.
Hidayat, D. and Stoecker, R., 2021. Collective knowledge mobilization through a community-university partnership. Journal of Higher Education Outreach and Engagement, 25(2).
Israel, BA, Schulz, AJ, Parker, EA, & Becker, AB 1998, ‘Review of community-based research: Assessing partnership approaches to improve public health’, Annual Review of Public Health, vol. 19, no. 1, pp. 173–202. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.publhealth.19.1.173
Janzen, R & Ochocka, J 2020, ‘Assessing excellence in community-based research: Lessons from research with Syrian refugee newcomers’, Gateways: International Journal of Community Research and Engagement, vol. 13, no. 1, pp. 1-20. https://doi.org/10.5130/ijcre.v13i1.7037
Lichtveld, M, Goldstein, B, Grattan, L, & Mundorf, C 2016, ‘Then and now: lessons learned from community-academic partnerships in environmental health research’, Environmental Health, vol. 15, no. 117, pp. 1-4. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12940-016-0201-5
Lindamer, LA, Lebowitz, B, Hough, RL, Garcia, P, Aguirre, A, Halpain, MC, Depp, C & Jeste, DV 2009, ‘Establishing an implementation network: Lessons learned from community-based participatory research’, Implementation Science, vol. 4, no. 17, pp. 1-7. http://www.implementationscience.com/content/4/1/17
Loh, P, Ackerman, Z, & Fidalgo, J 2021, ‘A relational approach to transforming power in a community-university partnership’, Gateways: International Journal of Community Research and Engagement, vol. 14, no. 2, pp. 1-16. https://doi.org/10.5130/ijcre.v14i2.7749
Mayan, MJ, & Daum, CH 2016, ‘Worth the risk? Muddled relationships in community-based participatory research’, Qualitative Health Research, vol. 26, no. 1, pp. 69–76. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049732315618660
Mayo, P 2019. Higher education in a globalising world: Community engagement and lifelong learning. Manchester University Press, Manchester.
McNeil, H., Elliott, J., Huson, K., Ashbourne, J., Heckman, G., Walker, J. and Stolee, P., 2016. Engaging older adults in healthcare research and planning: a realist synthesis. Research Involvement and Engagement, 2, pp.1-18.
Nkimbeng, M, Roberts, L, Thorpe Jr, RJ, Gitlin, LN, Delaney, A, Tanner, EK & Szanton, SL 2020, ‘Recruiting older adults with functional difficulties into a community-based research study: Approaches and costs, Journal of Applied Gerontology, vol. 39, no.6, pp. 644-650. doi: 10.1177/0733464818786612
Ortiz, K, Nash, Shea, L, Oetzel, J, Garoutte, J, Sanchez-Youngman, S & Wallerstein, N 2020, ‘Partnerships, processes, and outcomes: A health equity–focused scoping meta-review of community-engaged scholarship’, Annual Review of Public Health, vol. 41, pp. 177-199. DOI: 10.1146/annurev-publhealth-040119-094220
Palmer, J, Burton, LJ, & Walsh, A 2020, ‘Emerging spheres of engagement: The role of trust and care in community–university research’, Qualitative Research, vol. 20, no. 6, pp. 749-766. https://doi.org/10.1177/1468794120904891
Pant, M 2019, ‘Building community-based research capacity with communities: The PRIA experience’, in BL Hall, ET Jackson, R Tandon, J-M Fontan & N Lall (eds), Knowledge, democracy and action, Manchester University Press, Manchester, pp. 42-51. https://doi.org/10.7765/9781526137081.00013
Remley, D 2012, ‘Re-considering the range of reciprocity in community-based research and service learning: You don’t have to be an activist to give back’, Community Literacy Journal, vol. 6, no. 2, pp. 115-132. https://doi.org.10.1353/clj.2012.0025
Rooks, RN, McCarthy, S, Graybeal, B, & Griffin, S 2022, ‘Community-engaged research on social capital and older adults’ health: Lessons learned’, Gateways: International Journal of Community Research and Engagement, vol. 15, no. 1, pp. 1-16.. https://doi.org/10.5130/ijcre.v15i1.7832
Sabir, M, Wethington, E, Breckman, R, Meador, R, Reid, MC & Pillemer, K 2009, ‘A community-based participatory critique of social isolation intervention research for community-dwelling older adults’, Journal of Applied Gerontology, vol. 28, no. 2, pp. 218-234. https://doi.org/10.1177/0733464808326
Samimi, C & Sliva, S 2020, ‘It’s symbiotic: Exploring the facilitators and outcomes of a successful community-university research partnership’ Journal of Social Service Research, vol. 46, no. 5, pp. 613-622. https://doi.org/10.1080/01488376.2019.1612820
Sánchez, V., Sanchez‐Youngman, S., Dickson, E., Burgess, E., Haozous, E., Trickett, E., Baker, E. and Wallerstein, N., 2021. CBPR implementation framework for community‐academic partnerships. American Journal of Community Psychology, 67(3-4), pp.284-296.
Seifert, A 2020, ‘The digital exclusion of older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic’, Journal of Gerontological Social Work, vol. 63, no. 6–7, pp. 674–676. https://doi.org/10.1080/01634372.2020.1764687
Shephard, T 2021 “This has been a Godsend,” Etobicoke senior says of programs to combat COVID-19 isolation, Toronto.com, viewed 11 December 2023, https://www.toronto.com/news/this-has-been-a-godsend-etobicoke-senior-says-of-programs-to-combat-covid-19-isolation/article_7450f1d3-2830-5920-a8f8-840ff64596e4.html
Suarez-Balcazar, Y., Harper, G.W. and Lewis, R., 2005. An interactive and contextual model of community-university collaborations for research and action. Health Education & Behavior, 32(1), pp.84-101.
Taylor, SM & Ochocka, J 2017, ‘Advancing community-based research in Canada’, International Journal of Knowledge-Based Development, vol. 8, no. 2, pp. 183-200. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJKBD.2017.085151
Tryon, E & Stoecker, R 2008, ‘The unheard voices: Community organizations and service-learning’, Journal of Higher Education Outreach and Engagement, vol. 12, no. 3, pp. 47-60. https://openjournals.libs.uga.edu/jheoe/article/view/494/494
Tuck, E 2013, ‘Locating the hope in bone-deep participation’, in T Kress & R Lake (eds), We saved the best for you: Letters of hope, imagination and wisdom for 21st century educators, SensePublishers, Rotterdam, pp. 11-14. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-6209-122-1
Verma, S 2021, Building resilience in the face of COVID-19, Brighter World, viewed 11 December 2023 https://brighterworld.mcmaster.ca/articles/brent-mcknight-economic-resilience/
Wallerstein, N, Oetzel, JG, Sanchez-Youngman, S, Boursaw, B, Dickson, E, Kastelic, S, Koegel, P, Lucero, JE, Magarati, M, Ortiz, K, Parker, M, Peña, J, Richmond, A & Duran, B 2020, ‘Engage for equity: A long-term study of community-based participatory research and community-engaged research practices and outcomes’, Health Education & Behavior, vol. 47, no. 3, pp. 380-390. doi: 10.1177/1090198119897075
Wood, L 2022, ‘Community-based research with marginalized populations for transformative adult education’, in L Wood (ed), Community-based research with vulnerable populations: Ethical, inclusive and sustainable frameworks for knowledge generation, Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, CH, pp. 245-265. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-86402-6
Wood, L, & Zuber-Skerritt, O 2022, ‘Community-based research in higher education: Research partnerships for the common good’, Community-based research with vulnerable populations: Ethical, inclusive and sustainable frameworks for knowledge generation, Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, CH, pp. 3-30. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-86402-6
Wu, Y.-H, Ware, C, Damnée, S, Kerhervé, H, & Rigaud, A.-S 2015, ‘Bridging the digital divide in older adults: A study from an initiative to inform older adults about new technologies’ Clinical Interventions in Aging, vol. 10, pp. 193-201. https://doi.org/10.2147/CIA.S72399
Zimmerman, EB, Creighton, GC, Miles, C, Cook, S, Haley, A, Bea, C, Robles, A& Aroche, A 2019, ‘Assessing the impacts and ripple effects of a community–university partnership: A retrospective roadmap’, Michigan Journal of Community Service Learning, vol. 25, no. 1, pp. 62-76. doi: 10.3998/mjcsloa.3239521.0025.106