Be Yourself: A Focus Group Study of the Effects of Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program
Professor Monique M. Turner
The Project: Be Yourself (Sé tu mismo) is a teen pregnancy program aimed at teaching and assisting Latino youth to make positive decisions regarding all aspects of his or her life in a way that reflects an understanding of and respect for his or her true self. The goal of Be Yourself is to improve the health and well-being of program participants. There are four core components to the Be Yourself/Sé tu mismo program including: 1) curriculum based sessions, 2) social media and text messaging as reminders and reinforcements, 3) a weekend retreat, and 4) an individual action plan, case-management services, and “informal” weekly group sessions. The core components will be implemented by Identity and Mary’s Center staff over 16 weeks. A total of 12 school sites (10 in Montgomery County and 2 in Prince George’s County) were randomly assigned to either participate in Be Yourself or a control (Healthy Living/Vida Sana) intervention. Each semester 6 schools delivered the intervention program and 6 schools delivered the control program for a total of 12 groups each semester.
At the end of year 4 (of the 5 year program) our research team conducted focus group interviews with Be Yourself participants to assess whether the program affected their behaviors, beliefs, and emotions. In this project, student(s) will learn how to evaluate a program’s effects with qualitative data, conduct focus group analyses, write up literature reviews on this topic, and write up focus group results.
Research Assistant Tasks:
Student will:
Read all focus group transcripts
Thematize participant responses (i.e., code data)
Conduct systematic literature review
Write up results of focus groups
Time Commitment: 7-9 hours per week
Credit Hour Options: TBD
Application Requirements: I would like a cover letter explaining interest, any relevant experience, and any relevant course work. Email addresses for 3 references would also be desired.
Contact Email: mmturner@gwu.edu
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