Through this Career Development Award, Dr. Kenzie Cameron will receive the critical training and mentorship to reach her career goal of being an independent public health researcher addressing health promotion and preventive health issues. This award will allow Dr. Cameron to build on her previous experience in communication research and begin conducting funded studies in the domain of public health. Educational Aims: (1) Obtain comprehensive training in public health through pursuit of an MPH; (2) Pursue training in qualitative research, interviewing techniques, and survey design; (3) Gain knowledge and insight regarding presentation of health risk information to the lay public.
Research Aims : Research has indicated that minorities are significantly less likely to be vaccinated than are whites, yet few interventions have been designed to increase vaccination rates among minorities. This study will develop two versions of a Multimedia Influenza Prevention Program (MIPP) for African Americans to determine the effects of introducing information related to influenza vaccination using a positive introductory appeal or a negative introductory appeal. The MIPP will also address concerns raised by African American participants in focus groups conducted by the CDC, particularly issues related to trust and the safety of the vaccine. The specific research aims are: (1) Develop a theory-driven Multimedia Influenza Prevention Program (MIPP) for African Americans ages 65 and older; (2) Assess the effects of using a positive or negative introductory appeal to an influenza vaccination message on African Americans' message reception, message acceptance, and intention to be vaccinated against influenza. Methods: Four waves of focus groups will address the first research aim; the second research aim will be achieved through a feasibility study consisting of pre-intervention and post-intervention interviews. Significance: The training obtained by Dr. Cameron during the award period will allow her to become a leader in the development of health promotion and disease prevention messages. The research study conducted as part of this award will be the first to develop an influenza intervention for African Americans. It will go beyond previous research on health education and prevention messages by assessing the effect of positive and negative introductory appeals. By the end of the award period, Dr. Cameron will submit an R01 application for a Randomized Clinical Trial to assess the effect of these MIPPs on vaccination behavior among African Americans at multiple study sites. ? ?
| Trejo, JoAnn (2017) A reflection on faculty diversity in the 21st century. Mol Biol Cell 28:2911-2914 |
