Moving from ethnography to epidemiology: Lessons learned in Appalachia
- 1 January 2009
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Taylor & Francis Ltd in Annals of Human Biology
- Vol. 36 (3), 248-260
- https://doi.org/10.1080/03014460902832942
Abstract
Background: Anthropologists are beginning to translate insights from ethnography into tools for population studies that assess the role of culture in human behavior, biology, and health. Aim: We describe several lessons learned in the creation and administration of an ethnographically-based instrument to assess the life course perspectives of Appalachian youth, the Life Trajectory Interview for Youth (LTI-Y). Then, we explore the utility of the LTI-Y in predicting depressive symptoms, controlling for prior depressive symptoms and severe negative life events throughout the life course. Subjects and methods: In a sample of 319 youths (190 White, 129 Cherokee), we tested the association between depressive symptoms and two domains of the LTI-Y – life course barriers and milestones. Longitudinal data on prior depressive symptoms and negative life events were included in the model. Results: The ethnographically-based scales of life course barriers and milestones were associated with unique variance in depressive symptoms, together accounting for 11% of the variance in this outcome. Conclusion: When creating ethnographically-based instruments, it is important to strike a balance between detailed, participant-driven procedures and the analytic needs of hypothesis testing. Ethnographically-based instruments have utility for predicting health outcomes in longitudinal studies.Keywords
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