Community-Engaged Development of Strengths-Based Nutrition Measures: The Indigenous Nourishment Scales

Tara L. Maudrie (), Laura E. Caulfield, Cassandra J. Nguyen, Melissa L. Walls, Emily E. Haroz, Laura R. Moore, Rachel G. Dionne-Thunder, Joe Vital, Brook LaFloe, Alanna Norris, Vincent Dionne, Virgil Pain On Hip, Jessica Dickerson, Kerry Hawk Lessard, Antony L. Stately, Valarie Blue Bird Jernigan and Victoria M. O’Keefe
Additional contact information
Tara L. Maudrie: Center for Indigenous Health, Department of International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
Laura E. Caulfield: Program in Human Nutrition, Department of International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
Cassandra J. Nguyen: Department of Nutrition, University of California Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA
Melissa L. Walls: Center for Indigenous Health, Department of International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
Emily E. Haroz: Center for Indigenous Health, Department of International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
Laura R. Moore: Alexandria City Public Schools, Alexandria, VA 22314, USA
Rachel G. Dionne-Thunder: Indigenous Protector Movement, Minneapolis, MN 55404, USA
Joe Vital: East Phillips Neighborhood Institute, Minneapolis, MN 55404, USA
Brook LaFloe: Niniijaanis One of Ones, St. Paul, MN 55106, USA
Alanna Norris: Center for Indigenous Health, Department of International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
Vincent Dionne: Indigenous Protector Movement, Minneapolis, MN 55404, USA
Virgil Pain On Hip: Native American Lifelines, Baltimore, MD 21202, USA
Jessica Dickerson: Native American Lifelines, Baltimore, MD 21202, USA
Kerry Hawk Lessard: Native American Lifelines, Baltimore, MD 21202, USA
Antony L. Stately: Native American Community Clinic, Minneapolis, MN 55404, USA
Valarie Blue Bird Jernigan: Center for Indigenous Health Research and Policy, Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences, Tulsa, OK 74135, USA
Victoria M. O’Keefe: Center for Indigenous Health, Department of International Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA

IJERPH, 2024, vol. 21, issue 11, 1-18

Abstract: Mainstream approaches to nutrition typically focus on diet consumption, overlooking multi-dimensional aspects of nutrition that are important to American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) communities. To address health challenges faced by AI/AN communities, strengths-based measures of nutrition grounded in community worldviews are needed. In collaboration with AI/AN communities in Baltimore and Minneapolis, we developed the Indigenous Nourishment Scales through three phases. Phase 1 involved focus group discussions with nine community-research council (CRC) members ( n = 2) and four in-depth interviews ( n = 4) to gather perspectives on existing models of nutrition. Phase 2 refined scales through two additional focus group discussions ( n = 2) with a total of nine participants and two in-depth interviews ( n = 2). Finally, in Phase 3, we held ten ( n = 10) cognitive interviews with AI/AN community members to refine the scales. Participants appreciated the measures’ ability to provoke reflection on their relationship with nutrition and suggested adjustments to better capture cultural nuances, such as incorporating concepts like “being a good relative” to land. The Indigenous Nourishment Scales represent a departure from conventional approaches by encompassing multiple dimensions of nourishment, offering a framework that addresses epistemic injustices in nutrition measurement and grounds health measurement efforts directly in community perspectives and worldviews.

Keywords: nutrition; American Indian/Alaska Native; measure development; community based participatory research; mixed methods; indigenous; food sovereignty (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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