Testing Impact of Health Literacy in AL and IFA Programs

描述（由申请人提供）：1993年全国成人识字率调查报告说，超过4000万美国成年人是功能性文盲。 关于识字率和健康的研究表明，识字率低与健康状况差之间有着密切的关系。因此，提高卫生知识水平，即“阅读、理解卫生保健信息并采取行动的能力”，对识字率低的人口至关重要。这项研究将测试综合家庭方法扫盲（IFA）的相对优点，甚至开始方案（与成人）的传统成人扫盲（AL）方案。此外，研究设计和理论指导的健康素养课程将提高识字和健康素养的成果在伊利诺伊州的参与者。 科学文献中关于IFA v. AL计划的相对优点存在根本性的差距。本研究将解决文献中的关键问题，通过使用从伊利诺伊州53个地点选择的随机研究设计对IFA和AL方法进行经验性测试。将在AL/IFA条件下为讲其他语言的英语者和以英语为母语的人制定和测试单独但内容相同的卫生知识普及课程。伊利诺伊州要求的既定识字措施将被用来衡量识字收益，以及其他措施（从课程）的基础上制定的计划行动理论，社会认知理论，课程的忠诚和实施的过程措施。 四个基本的教育假设将被测试：（1）IFA将证明在满足成人识字需求方面比AL计划更有效，（2）包括健康素养组成部分的成人识字课程将证明在提高成人识字能力方面比不包括健康素养组成部分的成人识字课程更有效，（3）IFA计划使用健康素养课程将更有效地提高识字比AL计划使用相同的课程或使用标准AL课程的计划，和（4）在ESOL计划，在使用相同的健康素养课程时，IFA将证明比传统的AL项目更有效地提高成人识字率。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The 1993 National Adult Literacy Survey reported that over 40 million U.S. adults were functionally illiterate. Research on literacy and health suggests a strong relationship between low literacy and poor health status. Improving health literacy, the "ability to read, understand, and act on health care information," is therefore of great importance to low literate populations. This research will test the relative merit of the Integrated Family Approach Literacy (IFA) Even Start programs (with adults) to the Traditional Adult Literacy (AL) programs. In addition, the research design and theoretically directed health literacy curriculum will enhance both literacy and health literacy outcomes in Illinois participants. Fundamental gaps exist in the scientific literature regarding the relative merit of IFA v. AL programs. This study will address key issues in the literature by empirically testing the IFA and AL approaches using a randomized study design selected from 53 sites in Illinois. Separate but content equivalent health literacy curricula will be developed and tested, under both AL/IFA conditions for English Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) and native English speakers (ABE/ASE). Established literacy measures required by the State of Illinois will be utilized to measure literacy gains, as well as other measures developed (from curriculum) based on Theory of Planned Action, Social Cognitive Theory, and process measures of curriculum fidelity and implementation. Four fundamental educational assumptions will be tested: (1) the IFA will prove more effective in addressing adult literacy needs than AL programs, (2) adult literacy curricula that include a health literacy component will prove more effective in improving adult literacy than adult literacy curricula that do not include a health literacy component, (3) IFA programs using a health literacy curriculum will be more effective in improving literacy than AL programs using the same curriculum or programs using a standard AL curriculum, and (4) in ESOL programs, the IFA will prove more effective in improving adult literacy than traditional AL programs when using the same health literacy curriculum.