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      Community Group Model Building as a Method for Engaging Participants and Mobilising Action in Public Health

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          Abstract

          Group model building (GMB) is a qualitative method aimed at engaging stakeholders to collectively consider the causes of complex problems. Tackling inequities in community nutrition is one such complex problem, as the causes are driven by a variety of interactions between individual factors, social structures, local environments and the global food system. This methods paper describes a GMB process that utilises three system mapping tools in a study with members of a multicultural, low-income community to explore declining fruit and vegetable intake in children. The tools were: (1) graphs over time, which captures the community’s understanding of an issue; (2) cognitive mapping, which enables participants to think systemically about the causes and consequences of the issue; (3) causal loop diagrams, which describe feedback loops that reinforce the issue and identify potential actions. Cognitive mapping, a tool not usually associated with GMB, was added to the research process to support the gradual development of participants’ thinking and develops the skills needed to tackle an issue from a systems perspective. We evaluate the benefits and impact of these three tools, particularly in engaging participants and increasing understanding of systems thinking in order to develop and mobilise action. The tools could be adapted for use in other community-based research projects. Key learnings were the value of genuine partnership with a local organisation for longevity of the project, recruitment of key decisionmakers from the community early in the process, and allowing time to create sustainable change.

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          Modeling Managerial Behavior: Misperceptions of Feedback in a Dynamic Decision Making Experiment

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            Learning in and about complex systems

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              A Community Based Systems Diagram of Obesity Causes

              Introduction Application of system thinking to the development, implementation and evaluation of childhood obesity prevention efforts represents the cutting edge of community-based prevention. We report on an approach to developing a system oriented community perspective on the causes of obesity. Methods Group model building sessions were conducted in a rural Australian community to address increasing childhood obesity. Stakeholders (n = 12) built a community model that progressed from connection circles to causal loop diagrams using scripts from the system dynamics literature. Participants began this work in identifying change over time in causes and effects of childhood obesity within their community. The initial causal loop diagram was then reviewed and elaborated by 50 community leaders over a full day session. Results The process created a causal loop diagram representing community perceptions of determinants and causes of obesity. The causal loop diagram can be broken down into four separate domains; social influences; fast food and junk food; participation in sport; and general physical activity. Discussion This causal loop diagram can provide the basis for community led planning of a prevention response that engages with multiple levels of existing settings and systems.
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                Author and article information

                Journal
                Int J Environ Res Public Health
                Int J Environ Res Public Health
                ijerph
                International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
                MDPI
                1661-7827
                1660-4601
                15 May 2020
                May 2020
                : 17
                : 10
                : 3457
                Affiliations
                [1 ]School of Population Health, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; sophia.harre@ 123456auckland.ac.nz (S.H.); aren830@ 123456aucklanduni.ac.nz (A.R.-D.); boyd.swinburn@ 123456auckland.ac.nz (B.S.)
                [2 ]Synergia Consulting Ltd, Auckland 1011, New Zealand; david.rees@ 123456synergia.co.nz
                [3 ]School of Environment, University of Auckland, Auckland 1142, New Zealand; a.bartos@ 123456auckland.ac.nz
                [4 ]Department of Public Health, Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, 1105 Amsterdam, The Netherlands; w.e.waterlander@ 123456amc.uva.nl
                Author notes
                Author information
                https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8365-5023
                https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1789-6248
                Article
                ijerph-17-03457
                10.3390/ijerph17103457
                7277214
                32429183
                9325fd1c-7f3a-443e-8750-551c88238f1c
                © 2020 by the authors.

                Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

                History
                : 25 April 2020
                : 13 May 2020
                Categories
                Article

                Public health
                systems analysis,public health,poverty,vegetables,system dynamics,group model building,participatory research,children,qualitative methods

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