“It’s about being healthy”; a novel approach to the socio-ecological model using family perspectives within the Latinx community

Abstract

Background The Latinx community is at risk for obesity, type 2 diabetes, and other chronic illnesses. Culturally appropriate, community facing physical activity (P.A.) and nutrition programs may provide the basis for families to improve their health status. Our objectives are as follows: 1. To investigate synergistic factors within this type of program that play a role in creating an environment for participants to learn and practice healthy behaviors. 2. To apply factors into a novel model of components that support health and wellness. 3. To design an intervention for future implementation and evaluation. Methods A two-year P.A. and nutrition program, Families Inspired Together 4 Youth Empowered to Succeed (FIT 4 YES), took place in Milwaukee, WI. with Hispanic families from 2018 to 2020 through a community-academic partnership. A pair of interviewers spoke with families who provided insight into the impact of the program. A grounded theory qualitative approach to code the transcripts guided the team to identify overarching themes. Results Twenty-four interviews were conducted. Common themes indicated that children had a stronger belief in their abilities and confidence in peer support. Parents noticed their children increasing self-directed healthy behaviors. All families grew in their implementation of health and wellness. Conclusions Three main components of FIT 4 YES contributed to its success: opportunities for engagement, supportive relationships, and the interplay of components that emerged from the interviews. Effective programs could include these components to make their outcomes more cohesive within the family. A novel model emerged that builds on the social-ecological model that emphasizes the dynamic interactions between these main components. Additional research is needed to evaluate the long-term effects and response by the community.

Development and validation of the Chinese family environment influencing physical activity habits scale

“…Within this model (Sallis and Hovell, 1990 ) the “ecological” model of health behavior provides a holistic understanding of how diverse determinants interact across various levels in individuals' physical and socio-cultural environments. The family environment, as a primary socializing agent, holds significant influence adolescents' exercise behaviors and habits (Roque Garay, 2018 ; Korom et al, 2023 ). Families provide the foundation for learning and adopting health behaviors (Hunt et al, 2015 ).…”

Effectiveness of a socioecological model-guided, smart device-based, self-management-oriented lifestyle intervention in community residents: protocol for a cluster-randomized controlled trial

“…The socioecological model provides a useful theoretical framework that can help to understand how society, community, and individual level factors affect lifestyles and health outcomes of community residents [ 26 , 27 ]. However, the social-ecological model has also been criticized for lacking an agency dimension that considers people’s decision making and self-management strategies [ 27 , 28 ].…”

“…The socioecological model provides a useful theoretical framework that can help to understand how society, community, and individual level factors affect lifestyles and health outcomes of community residents [ 26 , 27 ]. However, the social-ecological model has also been criticized for lacking an agency dimension that considers people’s decision making and self-management strategies [ 27 , 28 ]. Empowerment models, in turn, focus on the agency dimension and people’s self-management strategies, emphasizing opportunities to develop self-management skills, social engagement and personalization of goals [ 29 ], but neglect the multilayered nature of environmental influences [ 11 ].…”