Promoting Health Literacy and Cultural Humility: CBOs and Wraparound Services.

The COVID-19 pandemic placed demands on community-based organizations (CBOs) to address human needs to promote the health and well-being of diverse communities experiencing high rates of disparities. To enhance the capacity of CBOs in engaging with their communities, we developed webinars on health literacy and cultural humility. The concept that drove the training was wraparound services, with the objective to increase CBOs' skills and knowledge for addressing the needs of the whole person.

Promoting Justice, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Through Caring Communities: Why It Matters to Occupational Therapy.

The global challenges humanity faces today, such as social and economic inequalities, occupational deprivation, racism, exclusion, displacement and migration crises, violence, wars, and political oppression, all contribute to health and participation inequities (Powell & Toppin, 2021). The depth and breadth of these inequities became strikingly evident and were exacerbated with the coronavirus 2019 pandemic (Khanijahani et al., 2021).

Disability rights and empowerment: Reflections on AJCP research and a call to action.

People living with physical, sensory, intellectual, and/or developmental disabilities experience complex social, environmental, political, and cultural challenges along with stigma and marginalization in education, employment, and community life. These multiple and complex barriers often hinder their full and effective participation in society. In this reflection, we curated articles on physical, sensory, intellectual, and/or developmental disabilities published in the American Journal of Community Psychology from 1973 to 2022.

Associations between parenting strategies and BMI percentile among Latino children and youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Introduction: Maintaining healthy weight is a challenge for all children, and particularly for children with IDD compared to nondisabled children and for Latino children compared to non-Latino White children. Parenting practices related to food intake and physical activity have been found to be important in maintaining children's weight. In this study, we describe the prevalence of overweight and obesity status among Latino children with IDD and their maternal caregivers and determine the relationship between food and physical activity parenting practices and childhood obesity among Latino children with IDD.

Participation Outcomes Among Black Children with Disabilities: A Scoping Review.

Aim: Participation disparities among Black children with disabilities are widely documented in a variety of disciplines. Grounded in the Social Model of Disability and Disability Critical Race Theory, the purpose of this scoping review was to examine the extent to which occupational therapy has contributed to the study of participation outcomes among Black children with disabilities.

Methods: Empirical studies published from 2010 to 2021 that reported participation outcome data published in nine frequently cited journals were included in this scoping review.

Reproductive justice for Black, Indigenous, Women of Color: Uprooting race and colonialism.

Historically, atrocities against Black, Indigenous, and Women of Color's (BIWoC) reproductive rights have been committed and continue to take place in contemporary society. The atrocities against BIWoC have been fueled by White supremacy ideology of the "desirable race" and colonial views toward controlling poverty and population growth, particularly that of "undesirable" races and ethnicities. Grounded in Critical Race Theory, this paper aims to provide a critical analysis of historical and contemporary violations of BIWoC reproductive rights; discuss interventions based on empowerment and advocacy principles designed to promote women's reproductive justice; and discuss implications for future research, action, and policy from the lenses of Critical Race Theory and Community Psychology.

Interventions for Health Promotion and Obesity Prevention for Children and Adolescents with Developmental Disabilities: a Systematic Review.

Unlabelled: This systematic review evaluated interventions and relevant outcomes for health promotion and obesity prevention among children and adolescents with developmental disabilities (DD). Twenty-one studies including randomized control trials (= 9) and quasi-experimental studies (=12) published between 2010 and 2021 met inclusion criteria related to participant characteristics, intervention type, and child obesity-related outcomes. Five types of intervention programs were identified: aerobic and strength training, sport-based physical activity, aquatic exercise, active video gaming, and diet and lifestyle.

Promoting justice through community-based research: International case studies.

Community-based participatory research (CBPR) approaches to promoting justice focus on working from the ground up and giving a voice to marginalized communities regarding their concerns, potential solutions, and how to address social justice issues that matter to them. The pursuit of justice is often related to efforts to attain personal as well as collective well-being. In this paper, we illustrate three exemplars of community psychologists' efforts to promote justice.

Goal Setting with Latinx Families of Children with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities: Case Studies.

Behavioral community psychology focuses on studying issues that matter to communities, unpacking contextual factors that impact people's behaviors, and identifying strategies to address such issues. Goal setting is one such strategy often used by behavioral psychologists. Grounded in the values of behavioral community psychology and a behavior analysis paradigm, this study illustrated two case studies of Latinx parents of children with disabilities where goal-setting strategies were implemented to promote behavior change.

Community-engaged asset mapping with Latinx immigrant families of youth with disabilities.

Asset mapping is a participatory methodology that engages community members in identifying services and settings that promote health and well-being. This study aimed to identify community assets from the perspective of Latinx immigrant families with youth with disabilities. Latinx immigrant families (n = 21) participated in the mapping, followed by a reflection session and an open forum (n = 30).

Applying Community-Based Participatory Approaches to Addressing Health Disparities and Promoting Health Equity.

This special issue highlights work that contributes to our understanding of health disparities and community-based participatory research (CBPR) approaches to promoting health equity across diverse populations and issues that matter to communities. We take on a global perspective, and thus, various efforts across international contexts are illustrated. Articles elucidate a variety of CBPR approaches designed to empower and build capacity among individuals and communities in order to seek changes at the level of community practices, programs, and systems.

Barriers to and facilitators of community participation among Latinx migrants with disabilities in the United States and Latinx migrant workers in Canada: An ecological analysis.

Individuals migrate to improve their wellbeing and quality of life, and often experience adverse situations, both during the process of migration and once within the host country. The purpose of this paper is to unpack the barriers to and facilitators of community participation, among Latinx immigrants with disabilities in the United States and Latinx migrant workers in Canada, following the Social Ecological Model. The authors draw from an appraisal of existing literature and their own participatory research with Latinx immigrants.

Latinx Parents' Perceptions of Neighborhood Walking Safety for Their Youth With Intellectual Disabilities: A Mixed-Methods Investigation.

Increased walking distance and frequency has been linked to positive health outcomes. Neighborhood walkability disproportionately impacts youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). We investigated concerns of Latinx parents of youth with IDD about walkability and their impact on families' walking behavior.

Clinical Relevance and Psychometric Properties of the Swedish Version of the Cultural Competence Assessment Instrument.

Based on the increasing diversity of Swedish society, health professionals, like occupational therapists, find it challenging to provide culturally competent services to international clients. Consequently, cultural competence among professionals needs to be measured and improved using psychometrically tested instruments. This study examines the clinical relevance, construct validity, and reliability of the Swedish version of the Cultural Competence Assessment Instrument among Swedish occupational therapists.

Walkability Safety and Walkability Participation: A Health Concern.

Walking is correlated with both improved physical and emotional health. However, walking behavior is often heavily influenced by environmental conditions. The goal of this study was to examine actual and perceived walkability safety and the relationship between perceived walkability safety and self-rated levels of walkability participation, defined as the number of places one walks within the community on a regular basis.

Meaningful Engagement in Research: Community Residents as Co-creators of Knowledge.

Community psychologists have contributed significantly to the body of literature on community-based participatory research (CBPR) and its application in understanding and addressing health and community participation disparities. At the core of CBPR are mutually beneficial partnerships with communities, whereby community members' voices are heard and they become co-researchers, helping guide the research process. In this article, I argue that for community psychologists to change the landscape of community participation, health, and well-being disparities experienced by many vulnerable populations who often face multiple forms of oppression, CBPR needs to be transformative and emancipatory.

A Community-Based Participatory Action Research for Roma Health Justice in a Deprived District in Spain.

Addressing health disparities and promoting health equity for Roma has been a challenge. The Roma are the largest disadvantaged ethnic minority population in Europe and have been the victims of deep social and economic injustices, institutional discrimination, and structural antigypsyism over many centuries. This has resulted in a much worse health status than their non-Roma counterparts.

Community-based participatory research to promote healthy lifestyles among Latino immigrant families with youth with disabilities.

Background/aims: Community-based participatory research (CBPR) is an optimal approach that brings together community stakeholders, researchers and practitioners in an effort to understand and address social issues and health disparities experienced by vulnerable populations. Latino immigrant families in the United States with youth and young families with disabilities have experienced a number of barriers in gaining positive health outcomes. These families face challenges in maintaining a healthy lifestyle, placing them at high risk for obesity, diabetes, and other chronic health conditions.

Analysis of Time in Rehabilitation and Incidence of Successful Rehabilitation Within Individuals with Disabilities Receiving Occupational/Vocational Training.

Objective To investigate the incidence of successful rehabilitation, defined as 90 successive days in employment, within individuals with disabilities receiving occupational/vocational training (OVT) service. Method The follow-up records between January 1, 2004 and December 31, 2012 of 5313 individuals aged 15-55 who obtained OVT in the vocational rehabilitation (VR) program of the State of Illinois were examined. Cox regression models were used to analyze the effect of study factors on VR outcomes.

Health disparities: Understanding and promoting healthy communities.

This themed issue focuses on understanding and addressing several public health issues affecting communities today nationally and internationally. Health disparities, and global health in general, cover a large breadth of health concerns impossible to address in one issue. Here we provide a scope of some health disparities while focusing on health promotion and well-being of diverse populations, specifically within urban undeserved populations, rural communities in Peru, Roma minorities in Spain, and refugee communities.

Unpacking barriers to healthy lifestyles from the perspective of youth with disabilities and their parents.

Adolescents and young adults with disabilities experience several health inequalities and challenges in maintaining healthy lifestyles. As a group, individuals with disabilities experience higher rates of obesity compared to youth without disabilities. This study was designed to examine the types of challenges experienced by youth with disabilities and parents of youth with disabilities in maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

Benefits of a Culturally Tailored Health Promotion Program for Latino Youth With Disabilities and Their Families.

Little research is available about youth with disabilities, who experience numerous inequalities in health outcomes compared with youth without disabilities. Youth with disabilities experience many environmental and attitudinal barriers in maintaining healthy lifestyles, which put them at risk for obesity. Strong evidence has suggested that obesity rates are higher among youth with disabilities than among their nondisabled peers.

On Becoming Scholars and Activists for Disability Rights.

In this paper, the authors discussed the nexus between the Americans with Disabilities Act and the founding of the field of Community Psychology. Contributions of the latter and future areas of research are reviewed here in three areas of importance to both fields: Community living and participation, employment, and transition from high school. Community psychology can make potential contributions to advancing research in these three areas.