ABSTRACT
Given both the importance and difficulty of promoting community-based public health coalitions, their capacity for sustainable action merits systematic examination. The current study addresses this need, focusin specifically on the relational dimension of capacity, that is, how relationships both among members and with external actors affect coalition-level activity. The context is a multimethod comparative case study of two rural cancer control coalitions.The authors began by using quantitative and qualitative data to characterize relational capacity in each coalition and then assessed the association between coalition-level relational capacity and level of subsequent interventions. The more active coalition had a more inclusive relational structure than did its less active counterpart but also placed less emphasis on personal friendships. The authors conclude that coalitions relational structures are measurable and that this dimension of capacity may affect sustainable capacity for health promotion. (AU)
Subject(s)
Community Networks , Health PromotionABSTRACT
Given both the importance and difficulty of promoting community-based public health coalitions, their capacity for sustainable action merits systematic examination. The current study addresses this need, focusing specifically on the relational dimension of capacity, that is, how relationships both among members and with external actors affect coalition-level activity. The context is a multimethod comparative case study of two rural cancer control coalitions. The authors began by using quantitative and qualitative data to characterize relational capacity in each coalition and then assessed the association between coalition-level relational capacity and level of subsequent interventions. The more active coalition had a more inclusive relational structure than did its less active counterpart but also placed less emphasis on personal friendships. The authors conclude that coalitions' relational structures are measurable and that this dimension of capacity may affect sustainable capacity for health promotion.
Subject(s)
Community Participation , Cooperative Behavior , Health Promotion/organization & administration , Interpersonal Relations , Appalachian Region , Female , Humans , Neoplasms/diagnosis , Neoplasms/prevention & control , Public Health , United StatesABSTRACT
In this study, a crisis of leadership succession led to greater subsequent pluralism by the previously less inclusive coalition. Substantial tension existed between both coalitions and the federally funded Appalachia Cancer Network, especially around its evidence-based mission. The fact that this tension occurred even at the more locally inclusive site indicates that pluralism may vary across levels within the same coalition. This article contributes to theory by exploring how coalitions evolve over time across community boundaries, as well as to management practice by yielding guidance about how to build inclusive organizations.
