CATCH - PROCESS EVALUATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL-FACTORS AND PROGRAMS

The Child and Adolescent Trial for Cardiovascular Health (CATCH) is a multicenter trial designed to test the effectiveness of school and fam ily-based cardiovascular health promotion for preadolescents. CATCH in terventions target multiple cardiovascular health behaviors such as di etary intake of fat and sodium, physical activity, and tobacco use. Ev aluation includes physiological, psychosocial, behavioral, and process measures. An important aspect of the process evaluation is the assess ment of environmental factors and ''secular events'' in both intervent ion and control schools that may affect outcomes independently of the CATCH interventions. With such information, CATCH investigators are ab le to isolate the impact of the CATCH intervention from competing (non -CATCH) factors as well as ''track'' proximal (i.e., immediate and sho rt term) changes related to the intervention that may in turn lead to ''distal'' (long-term) behavior change. The School Health Questionnair e, the major process evaluation tool for monitoring secular and enviro nmental changes in the schools, is described in detail, and data descr ibing tobacco-related environmental factors and secular events are pre sented.