2014 · Study · English

Relating Coalition Capacity to the Adoption of Science-Based Prevention in Communities: Evidence from a Randomized Trial of Communities That Care

Shapiro, V. B., Oesterle, S., & Hawkins, J. D.

Shapiro, V. B., Oesterle, S., & Hawkins, J. D. (2014). Relating Coalition Capacity to the Adoption of Science-Based Prevention in Communities: Evidence from a Randomized Trial of Communities That Care. American Journal of Community Psychology, 55(1-2), 1–12. doi.org/10.1007/s10464-014-9684-9

Summary

Measurement and moderation study in the American Journal of Community Psychology on which coalition capacities help CTC change a community. Using member surveys from the 12 CTC coalitions in the community-randomised trial, the authors describe the measurement properties of five capacities – members’ substantive knowledge of prevention, acquisition of new skills, attitudes toward CTC, organisational linkages and influence on organisations – and test whether they moderated the community-wide adoption of a science-based approach to prevention as reported by key leaders. All five could be measured reliably from member reports. Meta-regression across the 12 matched pairs of CTC and control communities found that CTC had a larger effect on adoption where the coalition scored higher on new skill acquisition among members and on organisational linkages; the other three capacities did not moderate the effect. For European coordinators, two things worth investing in early: members’ skills and working ties to the organisations that will deliver programmes.