The Stroman Effect

Participants in MEN Count, an HIV/STI Reduction Intervention for Unemployed and Unstably Housed Black Heterosexual Men, Define Its Most Successful Elements

Bibliographic Data

ID21748747
AuthorsLisa Bowleg (0000-0003-4677-8195, George Washington University, corresponding author), Jenné S Massie (George Washington University), Sidney L Holt (0000-0002-9315-7423, George Washington University), Cheriko A Boone (0000-0002-2871-2419, George Washington University), Mary Mbaba (0000-0001-5419-7898, George Washington University), Wayne A Stroman (Emery Work Bed Program, Coalition for the Homeless, Inc., Washington, DC, USA), Lianne A Urada (0000-0002-0160-3183, University of San Diego), Lianne Urada (University of San Diego), Anita Raj (0000-0002-8127-5123, University of San Diego)
Year2020
Volume14
Issue4
Pages1557988320943352-1557988320943352
Publication date2020-07-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueAmerican Journal of Men s Health (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1557-9883 • E-ISSN: 1557-9891
PublisherSAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/1557988320943352
PMID32693659
OpenAlexW3044655191
LanguageEN
References cited33

Interventionists often prioritize quantitative evaluation criteria such as design (e.g., randomized controlled trials), delivery fidelity, and outcome effects to assess the success of an intervention. Albeit important, criteria such as these obscure other key metrics of success such as the role of the interactions between participants and intervention deliverers, or contextual factors that shape an intervention’s activities and outcomes. In line with advocacy to expand evaluation criteria for health interventions, we designed this qualitative study to examine how a subsample of Black men in MEN Count, an HIV/STI risk reduction and healthy relationship intervention with employment and housing stability case management for Black men in Washington, DC, defined the intervention’s success. We also examined the contextual factors that shaped participation in the study’s peer counseling sessions. We conducted structured interviews with 38 Black men, ages 18 to 60 years ( M = 31.1, SD = 9.33) who completed at least one of three peer counseling sessions. Analyses highlighted three key themes: (a) the favorable impact of Mr. Stroman, the lead peer counselor, on participants’ willingness to participate in MEN Count and disclose their challenges—we dubbed this the “Stroman Effect”; (b) the importance of Black men intervention deliverers with relatable life experiences; and (c) how contextual factors such as the HIV/AIDS epidemic, needs for housing and employment services and safe spaces to talk about challenges, and absentee fathers shaped participation. We discuss the study’s implications for sustainable programs after funding ends and future multilevel health interventions to promote health equity for poor urban Black men

Family medicine · Men who have sex with men · Psychological intervention · Clinical Psychology · Food Security and Health in Diverse Populations · Gender, Labor, and Family Dynamics · Homelessness and Social Issues · Medicine · Nursing · Psychology · Gerontology

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