Abstract
This Participatory Action Research aimed to increase the quality of life among community-dwelling adults through participation in a reflection-based problem-solving intervention. It explored the effects of group activity on functional mobility, social interactions, and emotional health in community-dwelling adults residing in subsidized housing. In a nine-week intervention, participants showed an 87% increase in functional movement scores on the TUG and social interactions.
Primary Author and Speaker: Jalisa Johnson
Additional Authors and Speakers: Amy Rollins, Jeanne Wenos
This Participatory Action Research (PAR) using pre and post-testing was initiated by a team of occupational therapy (OT) graduate students, academic researchers, community stakeholders (Diverse faculty group from local university and an Anglican Church), and five undergraduate student volunteers from the organization Overcoming Barriers (exercise buddies). PAR is a method encouraging individuals living in low socioeconomic communities to improve the quality of life by overcoming structural barriers. Through this method, researchers work in partnership with community residents to effect change for what negatively affects their lives through experiential learning, reflecting on the learning, and then acting. Participating in community-based occupations links individuals to socially connected resources (Mulry, Papetti, Martinis, & Ravinsky, 2017). For example, small group exercise sessions were shown to foster neighborhood interactions and build relationships (Mulry et al. 2017), however few group exercise opportunities exist for individuals with low socioeconomic status (Gary et al., 2016).
Based upon the results of a previously conducted needs assessment a movement club was developed to address emotional health, sedentary behaviors, risk for falls, functional mobility and desire to build community through social interactions. The present study was viewed through the lens of PAR and the Person, Environment, Occupations (PEO) theory as identified by Law, et. al., so that study participants were examined within the context of their environment (government subsidized housing) as they perform “occupations” (physical activities/social interactions) (see manuscript Law, Cooper, Strong, Stewart, Rigby, & Letts).
Two OT students, one faculty member, five exercise buddies, and residents of the housing community completed a 9-week movement intervention for this PAR. Adult residents (n=12) provided consent to participate in the study. Adult residents (n=12) provided consent to participate in the study. Pre and Post testing included blood pressure, blood oxygen levels, heart rate, height, weight, Timed Up and Go (TUG) test, 10-meter walk test, Perceived Quality of Life Questionnaire, BORG test of physical exertion (PE) and a sociogram. Five participants attended regularly, and contributed to the movement club activities through weekly spoken and/or written feedback. Three participants completed pre and post assessments and participated in 100 percent of the movement club sessions. In the preliminary analyses, the TUG resulted in change scores of -2.7s, 5.1s, and 2.3s on pre and post TUG tests, with an 87% increase. Social interactions observed by researchers, amongst the participants began to increase during the fourth week of intervention.
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