Researcher and researched-community perspectives: Toward bridging the gap

In the process of initiating a new community-based research project, the au thors wanted to understand the experiences of community members and researc hers in community-based research projects and to develop guidelines to impr ove future projects. They conducted qualitative, key informant interviews w ith 41 people involved at all levels of community-based research projects i n Seattle. Respondents were identified using a snowball sampling technique. More problems than successes were discussed by informants, including dissa tisfaction with the focus of research, which some said is marked by a lack of cultural appropriateness and relevance. Power imbalances, lack of trust, and communication difficulties impeded collaboration. According to respond ents, many problems could be avoided if the community were involved from th e beginning in setting research priorities and developing and implementing interventions. Meaningful collaboration between communities and researchers is characterized by early involvement of communities, power sharing, mutua l respect, community benefit, and cultural sensitivity.