title: An empirical case study of the effects of training and technical assistance on community coalition functioning and sustainability.
abstract: The case study analyzes the effects of training and technical assistance on the amount of community changes facilitated by members of a community coalition to prevent adolescent substance use. The study examines the sustainability of these changes in the community over time. The coalition implemented a Community Change Intervention that focused on building coalition capacity to support implementation of community changes-program, policy, and practice changes. Over the 2-year intervention period, there were 36 community changes facilitated by the coalition to reduce risk for adolescent substance use. Results showed that the coalition facilitated an average of at least 3 times as many community changes (i.e., program, policy and practice changes) per month following the intervention. Action planning was found to have accelerated the rate of community changes implemented by the coalition. After the intervention there was increased implementation of three key prioritized coalition processes: Documenting Progress/Using Feedback, Making Outcomes Matter, and Sustaining the Work. A 1-year probe following the study showed that the majority of the community changes were sustained. Factors associated with the sustainability of changes included the continued development of collaborative partnerships and securing multiyear funding.
authors.affiliation: Wichita State University, Wichita, KS, USA nikki.keenewoods@wichita.edu.
authors.forename: Nikki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Keene Woods
authors.affiliation: University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA.
authors.forename: Jomella
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Watson-Thompson
authors.affiliation: University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA.
authors.forename: Daniel J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Schober
authors.affiliation: Youth Community Coalition, Columbia, MO, USA.
authors.forename: Becky
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Markt
authors.affiliation: University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS, USA.
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fawcett
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D057191:Capacity Building; D019058:Community Networks; D005260:Female; D006290:Health Planning Technical Assistance; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008923:Missouri; D015980:Public Health Practice; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000517:prevention & control*
keywords: coalitions; community change; sustainability; technical assistance