Vietnamese American women constitute a high-risk population for breast and cervical cancer, so it is essential to educate this population about cancer topics as well as promote cancer-screening behaviors. Successful interventions must be culturally tailored and the role of cultural factors in the promotion of preventive behaviors must be examined. To promote cancer-screening among Vietnamese women, Vietnamese participants will be asked to undergo a community-based intervention. Called Khoe Manh La Tot Hon Dep! (Health is Better than Beauty!), the intervention will involve educating Vietnamese women using culturally-sensitive materials while connecting them to no-insurance or low-income providers to promote preventive behaviors. The proposal's specific aim is to test the effectiveness of a community-based participatory model intervention to promote preventive behaviors. Community leaders who have guided intervention development will recruit 100 Vietnamese American women. Women will be assigned to an intervention or an activity control group. These women will undergo a two-hour intervention session in which they learn about cancer prevention and treatment, including the identity and location of local providers, in presentations and facilitated discussions in a culturally-appropriate setting. Pre- and post- tests will measure cancer awareness and knowledge, as well as intention and self-efficacy to engage in preventive screenings. Cultural factors (e.g., ethnic identity, religiosity, and acculturation) may influence prevention behavior in ethnic groups and will be measured. Three months after exposure to the intervention sessions, follow-up focus groups will explore longer-term changes in knowledge and changes in cancer-screening behavior. The relevance of this proposal to public health research is that it addresses a crucial health disparity. Vietnamese women experience lower rates of preventive behaviors compared to the general population and other Asian populations as shown by their low rates of Pap testing and receipt of clinical breast examinations and mammograms.This proposal seeks to combat this health disparity by using a Community-based Participatory Research (CBPR) approach. Such an approach is consistent with understanding and implementing prevention interventions with ethnic minority populations. Thus, this research would provide further evidence for the efficacy of CBPR approaches in health promotion especially with ethnic minority populations.
| Nguyen, Anh B; Clark, Trenette T; Belgrave, Faye Z (2014) Gender roles and acculturation: relationships with cancer screening among Vietnamese American women. Cultur Divers Ethnic Minor Psychol 20:87-97 |
| Nguyen, Anh B; Clark, Trenette T (2014) The role of acculturation and collectivism in cancer screening for Vietnamese American women. Health Care Women Int 35:1162-80 |
| Nguyen, Anh B; Belgrave, Faye Z (2014) Suc Khoe La Quan Trong Hon Sac Dep! Health is better than beauty! A community-based participatory research intervention to improve cancer screening among Vietnamese women. J Health Care Poor Underserved 25:605-23 |
| Nguyen, Anh B; Belgrave, Faye Z (2012) Health sources of cancer screening knowledge for Vietnamese women. J Cancer Educ 27:320-6 |
