Staff perceptions of research in the context of specific strategies for collaboration with Head Start programs

This study focused on the strategies researchers used to build and maintain partnerships with three Head Start programs in the southeastern United Sta tes and the attitudes of the staff of these programs toward research partne rship. III order to explore the relationship between staff attitudes toward research partnership, job satisfaction, and perceptions of the Head Start program's policies and procedures, teachers and teacher aides were surveyed using the Job Satisfaction Scale, the Policy and Program Management Invent ory, and a researcher-developed instrument about their attitudes toward the research partnership. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and regression analysis. The results of this study indicate that staff support for this research partnership was high and broad-based within the three Hea d Start partner programs, demonstrating evidence for the effectiveness of t he suggested strategies. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved .