Co-developing community-based participatory research (CBPR) guidelines in Hong Kong : an example of a mental health literacy promotion project

Abstract

Although community-based participatory research (CBPR) is context and cultural-specific, existing CBPR guidelines were developed in the West and may not be suitable for East Asian contexts given different cultural backgrounds. Moreover, most CBPR mental health literacy promotion projects have been conducted in the West, with limited examples in East Asia. Therefore, the objectives of the current study were to co-develop CBPR guidelines with stakeholders in Hong Kong and to illustrate this with an example of a mental health literacy promotion project. We conducted seven focus group discussions with seventeen older adults in the community and eleven social workers from partnering non-governmental organizations. Subsequently, we formed a panel with community stakeholders to co-analyze and co-interpret the data and findings. Using the grounded theory approach, we identified six guidelines pertinent to CBPR practice in East Asian communities: 1. Highlighting an ‘acceptance and openness’ mentality in CBPR training; 2. Navigating the hierarchical culture to facilitate an equal partnership; 3. Breaking the project into smaller action tasks to facilitate design and implementation; 4. Fostering collective harmony through team-building activities and informal gatherings; 5. Encouraging open discussion of mental health; 6. Leveraging informal networks in mental health literacy promotion. Our discussion focuses on the methodological insights of practicing CBPR in Hong Kong and its implications in East Asian communities, along with the cultural differences compared to the West.