Dr. Robbins aims to become an independent cancer control and population health scientist. Dr. Robbins presents a research, mentoring and career development plan with the overall objective to provide her with (a) an in-depth understanding of implementation science theories and their influences on scientific development in public health (b) opportunities to conduct community-based health interventions, using innovative qualitative methods new to implementation science (c) a sophisticated community of colleagues to support and assist with mutual success (d) preparation of empirically-based scientific articles, and (e) preparation and submission of an NIH early stage investigator career grant proposal. In collaboration with her mentor, Dr. Dzewaltowski, Dr. Robbins will dedicate two years to professional development and mentoring focused around a study aimed to complement the parent grant which addresses a critical public health need by evaluating the impact of a whole- of-community multi-level adaptive systems intervention on implementation of community change and youth population physical activity, involving community hubs and processes that lead to evidence-based decision making. This study aims to determine, through indigenous qualitative inquiry, 1) the influence of individual cultural characteristics (ways of knowing, being and doing) on adoption and implementation (participation) of a role in the collective community hub work and 2) the influence of individual cultural characteristics (ways of knowing, being and doing) on community hub coalition capacities to diffuse evidence-based practices through the community hub network. Two communities participating in the parent grant will be the focus of the proposed supplemental study. Following community-based participatory research principles and indigenous research methods, Robbins will conduct an ethnographic study of the community hub network to describe and interpret discernable working patterns of their social organization. The global objective of this supplement research study is to identify through indigenous qualitative methods community members? ways of knowing, being and doing and how this indigenous approach to scholarship can contribute to understanding the ways in which community coalitions support implementation of evidence-based practices within a community social system. Dr. Robbins will participate in numerous professional development opportunities and apply learnings to research publications, presentation and the development of future grant proposals. The proposed research and career development experiences would allow Dr. Robbins, a Cherokee woman and member of an underrepresented population, to develop career skills that will enable her to provide important and innovative contributions to reduce cancer health disparities. Developing Dr. Robbins? research skills and career benefit an indigenous research agenda and help us answer many of health behaviors? multi-level questions to improve population health.
A research, mentoring and career development plan is proposed to cultivate Dr. Robbins? research skills, leadership skills and scholarly activity to help her achieve the goal of becoming an independent cancer and population health scientist using indigenous qualitative inquiry.
