Visualizing Highway Pollution: A Study of Inter-generational Health Communication

描述(由申请者提供)：该项目开发了一种新型的健康沟通干预措施，旨在改善波士顿唐人街居民获得有关该社区暴露于与交通相关的空气污染的复杂科学信息的机会，空气污染是一个重要的健康因素。拟议的工作是发展的，旨在产生和完善干预措施，测试其在社区中的可接受性，并为更大规模的试验提供初步数据。由于唐人街居民在英语水平和接触电脑方面的局限性，他们很可能不会从媒体来源了解空气污染。在我们的干预中，我们将开发一种基于地图的计算机可视化，以显示整个唐人街的颗粒物污染。该软件的扩展Weave(iWeave.org)将显示根据高速公路暴露与健康社区评估(CAFEH；R01 ES015462)的结果得出的估计污染水平。计算机可视化上的菜单将是中英文双语的。用户将能够指向唐人街的各个地点，一个指示器将显示该地点的超细颗粒物污染水平，并使用污染密度较大或较小的样式描述。互动动画还将显示，当一个人关闭家中的窗户，有时在减少暴露的地方散步，或者在家里安装过滤或空调设备时，污染暴露的减少。然后，我们将与我们的社区合作伙伴唐人街服务机构共同创建一种跨代和文化上合适的方法，使用可视化工具来了解空气污染。在青年领导力项目以及在该机构举办的成人英语语言和计算机素养课程中，我们将首先培训12名双语高中生使用可视化工具。随后，这些高中生将教50名成年中国移民如何使用该工具，并让他们参与关于污染及其对健康影响的互动演示和对话。沟通干预意义重大，因为它创造了几项创新。以前还没有尝试过可视化整个社区的细颗粒物浓度，以便向外行人展示。因为与交通相关的颗粒物污染是看不见的、无气味的，但也是有毒的，使其从繁忙的交通来源向外行人扩散可能是影响他们对问题的兴趣和反应的关键。我们还将开发新的互动动画可视化，向波士顿唐人街的低识字率和不懂英语的居民宣传环境健康危害以及他们可以采取的保护自己的步骤。基于社区的计算机可视化环境健康代际协作学习方法是一种新的方法。为了进行评估，首先，我们将使用岗位前设计和关键知情人访谈来评估参与干预对公路污染知识、对环境健康信息的关注和主观算术技能的影响。其次，我们将采用经过验证的公民措施来评估对公路污染及其对健康影响的知识表达的自我效能的增加。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This project develops a novel health communication intervention aimed at improving Boston Chinatown residents' access to complex scientific information about this community's exposure to traffic-related air pollution, an important health factor. The proposed work is developmental, aimed at producing and refining the intervention, testing its acceptability in the community and producing preliminary data for a larger trial. Because of limitations in English proficiency and access to computers among Chinatown residents they are likely not learning about air pollution from their media sources. In our intervention, we will develop a map-based computer visualization of particulate pollution across Chinatown. The extension to the software, Weave (iWeave.org), will display estimated pollution levels derived from findings of the Community Assessment of Freeway Exposure and Health (CAFEH; R01 ES015462). Menus on the computer visualizations will be bilingual in Chinese and English. The user will be able to point to locations in Chinatown and an indicator will show levels of ultrafine particulate pollution for that location using styled depictions of greater or lsser density of pollution. Interactive animations will also show lowered pollution exposure when a person closes windows in homes, walks at times and locations with lowered exposure, or installs filtration or air condition devices in homes. We will then co-create with our community partner, a Chinatown service agency, an inter-generational and culturally appropriate method of using the visualization tool to learn about air pollution. At a youth leadership program and in adult English language and computer literacy classes held at the agency, we will first train 12 bilingual high school students to use the visualization tool. Subsequently, these high school students will teach 50 adult Chinese immigrants how to use the tool and engage them in interactive demonstrations and conversations about the pollution and its health effects. The communication intervention is significant because it creates several innovations. The visualization of fine particulate concentrations across a community for presentation to lay people has not been previously attempted. Because particulate traffic related pollution is invisible and odorless, but also toxic, making its dispersion from heavy traffic sources apparent to lay people may be critical to influencing their interest in and response to the problem. We will also develop new interactive animated visualizations informing low-literacy and non-English-proficient residents of Boston Chinatown about environmental health hazards and steps they can take to protect themselves. The method of community-based intergenerational collaborative learning about environmental health through computer visualization is new. To evaluate, first, we will use a pre-post design and key informant interviews to assess the effect of participation in the intervention on knowledge about highway pollution, attention to environmental health information, and subjective numeracy skills. Second, we will adapt validated civic measures to assess increases in self-efficacy of expression of knowledge learned about highway pollution and its health effects.