Characteristics of Area Agencies on Aging (AAA) and their attitudes toward engaging in research, knowledge of research-related topics, and ability to engage in research activities Restricted; Files Only

Abstract

Introduction: Area Agencies on Aging (AAA) provide services to support older adults and their caregivers through grants from the National Family Caregiver Support Program (NFCSP). Limited research exists on the attitudes, knowledge, and ability of AAAs to participate in research in relation to these characteristics. This analysis of the CARE Network Baseline Survey for AAA Providers aims to fill this research gap by identifying associations between AAA characteristics and AAAs’ attitudes toward engaging in research, knowledge of research-related topics, and ability to engage in research. Methods: Using responses from 65 AAAs, we ran a bivariate analysis with tests of statistical significance for each of our research questions. We obtained p-values (95% level of significance) and odds ratios from Fisher’s Exact tests to analyze the associations between AAA characteristics and their attitudes, knowledge, and ability to engage in research. Results: Only budget size and interest in engaging in research were significantly associated (p = 0.008) among attitudes toward engaging in research and AAA characteristics. We found significantly lower odds of having knowledge of survey items (OR = 0.30 [0.10, 0.89]; p = 0.038), data sets (OR = 0.20 [0.06, 0.68]; p = 0.012), and study design (OR = 0.28 [0.09, 0.95]; p = 0.049) in rural AAAs. Similarly, we found that AAAs serving predominantly rural areas had significantly lower odds of engaging the target population (OR = 0.31 [0.11, 0.89]; p = 0.040), collecting qualitative data (OR = 0.31 [0.11, 0.92]; p = 0.040), and communicating findings (OR = 0.24 [0.08, 0.77]; p = 0.017) compared to those not serving predominantly rural areas. Discussion: Of the AAA characteristics including budget size, HHS region, organization structure, and predominantly rural area served, service to a predominantly rural area was most consistently significantly associated with AAAs’ knowledge and ability of research. This highlights the necessity to address challenges rural AAAs face in participating in research. Increasing AAA engagement in research can improve their understanding of caregivers’ needs and allow them to apply evidence-based interventions which improve the well-being of caregivers and the older adults they care for.

Table of Contents

ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................................................................1

INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................................................................2

METHODS ...................................................................................................................................................8

RESULTS ....................................................................................................................................................13

DISCUSSION ..............................................................................................................................................21

REFERENCES .............................................................................................................................................29

APPENDIX .................................................................................................................................................32

About this Master's Thesis

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School	Rollins School of Public Health
Department	Epidemiology
Subfield / Discipline	Epidemiology - MPH & MSPH
Degree	M.P.H.
Submission	Master's Thesis
Language	English
Research Field	Health Sciences, Public Health Health Sciences, Epidemiology
Mot-clé	Area Agency on Aging (AAA) ability knowledge engagement in research attitudes caregiver
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Shih, Regina, Emory University

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