Ethnographic Strategies in the Tracking and Retention of Street-Recruited Community-Based Samples of Substance Using Hidden Populations in Longitudinal Studies

Abstract

The article presents practical and methodological strategies in the tracking and retention of a longitudinal community-based sample of 300 Mexican American noninjecting users of heroin. Presented are the ethnographic strategies the research team utilized to maintain high retention rates among this highly marginalized and hidden population. Findings indicate that these ethnographic strategies are the basis for a reliable method for subject retention among drug-using populations. Further, the strategies illustrate how qualitative methods can complement the collection of quantitative data. Discussed is how these strategies can be used to identify and engage similar populations in research studies.

RÉSUMÉ

Stratégies ethnographiques sur le dépistage et la rétention d’un échantillon de sniffers d’héroïne issus d’une communauté de Mexico-Americains.

Cet article présente des stratégies pratiques et méthodologiques focalisant sur le dépistage et la rétention d’un échantillon de nature continue composé de 300 sujets utilisant l’héroïne non-injectable, issus d’une communauté Mexico-Américaine. Les recherches ethnographiques utilisées par le groupe de recherche pour maintenir un haut degré de rétention parmi cette population fortement marginalisée et cachée sont présentées. Les résultats indiquent que ces stratégies ethnographiques sont la base d’une méthode sure pour la rétention de sujets parmi les populations qui utilisent les drogues. De plus, ces stratégies illustrent comment les méthodes qualitatives peuvent compléter les collections de données quantitatives. Une discussion démontre comment ces stratégies d’identification et d’engagement peuvent être utilisées dans les études de recherches sur des populations similaires.

RESUMEN

Estrategias Etnográficas en el seguimiento y retención de una muestra de sniffers de heroína en una comunidad de Mexico- Americanos

Este articulo presenta estrategias prácticas y metodológicas en el seguimiento y la retención de una comunidad longitudinal basada en una muestra de 300 Mexico-Americanos que son usuarios de heroína que no se inyectan (sniffers). En este articulo se presentan las estrategias etnográficas que el equipo de investigación utilizo para mantener altos índices de retención entre esta población altamente marginada y oculta. Las conclusiones indican que estas estrategias etnográficas son la base de un método fiable para la retención de sujetos en una población que usan drogas. Además, las estrategias ilustran cómo los métodos cualitativos pueden complementar la colección de datos cuantitativos. Este articulo discute cómo estas estrategias pueden ser utilizadas para identificar e involucrar a las poblaciones similares en los estudios de investigación.

Keywords :

• noninjecting heroin
• hidden populations
• retention
• contextual factors
• cross sectional research designs
• health risk behaviors
• longitudinal panel designs
• tracking strategies

THE AUTHORS

Alice Cepeda, Ph.D., is currently Assistant Professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Houston (UH) where she is also Associate Director of the Center for Drug and Social Policy Research (CDSPR). Dr. Cepeda received her Ph.D. in Sociology from the City University of New York, Graduate Center. Her experience and research interest has been in substance use, crime, violence, prostitution, and urban health issues among the Mexican-origin (Mexican Americans and Mexicans) population. At the CDSPR, Dr. Cepeda is currently coinvestigator of a NIDA funded study focused on examining how disaster related experiences associated with Hurricane Katrina impact changes in substance use and abuse patterns. More recently, she has been working on a research project as part of a NIDA funded Minority Institute Drug Abuse Research Development Program focused on social networks of aging Mexican American injecting heroin users. Dr. Cepeda is also a recipient and scholar of the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NCMHD) Loan Repayment Program.

Avelardo Valdez, Ph.D., is currently a professor at the Graduate College of Social Work at the University of Houston and Director of the Center for Drug and Social Policy Research. He obtained his Ph.D. in Sociology at the University of California, Los Angeles. He was also a Fulbright Scholar at the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Mexico, Mexico City, D.F. A primary focus of his research has been on the relationship between substance abuse and violence and health issues among high-risk groups. His research projects have been among “hidden populations” such as youth and prison gang members, injecting and noninjecting heroin users and sex workers on the U.S./Mexico border. He is a recipient of federal research grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). He is currently working on a NIDA-funded grant focused on examining long term consequences of adolescent gang membership on HIV, hepatitis and STIs. Dr Valdez is a current recipient of a NIDA Minority Institution Drug Abuse Research Development Program grant. His most recent book is entitled “Mexican American Girls and Gang Violence: Beyond Risk” published by Palgrave/St. Martin Press (2007).