The "Best of Both Worlds": Building a community‐academic partnership for research with legal system‐impacted individuals.

Equitable community‐academic research partnerships provide an innovative way to advance health outcomes among criminal legal system‐impacted individuals. The extant literature lacks accounts that detail the process for developing such partnerships, particularly in community‐based (rather than carcer...

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Published in:American Journal of Community Psychology Vol. 76; no. 3/4; pp. 195 - 207
Main Authors: Cohen, Talia R., Reece, Karen, Hicks, Aaron, Mejchar, Deborah, Alonso, Carmen, Cooper, Anthony, Koenigs, Michael R., Grupe, Daniel W.
Format: Article
Published: Wiley-Blackwell Dec2025
Subjects:
Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
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      dt: Dec2025
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        atl: The "Best of Both Worlds": Building a community‐academic partnership for research with legal system‐impacted individuals.
      aug:
        au:
          Cohen, Talia R.
          Reece, Karen
          Hicks, Aaron
          Mejchar, Deborah
          Alonso, Carmen
          Cooper, Anthony
          Koenigs, Michael R.
          Grupe, Daniel W.
        affil:
          Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin‐Madison, Madison Wisconsin,, USA
          Department of Psychiatry, University of Wisconsin‐Madison, Madison Wisconsin,, USA
          Nehemiah Center for Urban Leadership Development, Madison Wisconsin,, USA
          The Voices of Power, Madison Wisconsin,, USA
          Center for Healthy Minds, University of Wisconsin‐Madison, Madison Wisconsin,, USA
          Just Mindfulness, Madison Wisconsin,, USA
      su:
        Community-based participatory research
        Mental health services
        Criminal justice system
        Decision making
        Experiential learning
        Partnership agreements
        Cooperative research
      sug:
        subj:
          Community-based participatory research
          Mental health services
          Criminal justice system
          Decision making
          Experiential learning
          Other Justice, Public Order, and Safety Activities
          Psychiatric and Substance Abuse Hospitals
          Offices of Mental Health Practitioners (except Physicians)
          Residential Mental Health and Substance Abuse Facilities
          Partnership agreements
          Cooperative research
      keyword:
        community‐based participatory research
        incarceration
        mental health
        partnership development
        stakeholder advisory group
        community‐based participatory research
        incarceration
        mental health
        partnership development
        stakeholder advisory group
      ab: Equitable community‐academic research partnerships provide an innovative way to advance health outcomes among criminal legal system‐impacted individuals. The extant literature lacks accounts that detail the process for developing such partnerships, particularly in community‐based (rather than carceral) settings and with community organizations (rather than system actors). This First‐Person Account—co‐written by members of a research team consisting of academic researchers and community partners, including formerly incarcerated individuals—details opportunities and challenges that emerged through a year‐long pilot project intended to adapt a mental health intervention for correctional settings. The narrow focus of this project expanded dramatically over the course of the year as team members adapted to working together and realized the potential for the sustained impact of a long‐term collaboration. Key elements allowing for successful partnership development included (1) devoting time to building relationships in addition to "doing business"; (2) flexibility regarding the project aims and approach, which allowed for more equitable decision‐making; and (3) striving to understand and trust each other's respective expertise, whether based in academic training or lived experiences. Our experiences translate core principles of community‐based participatory research into concrete actions and practical examples of how to center the perspective of criminal legal system‐impacted individuals. Highlights: We built a community‐academic research partnership to advance mental health in the prison setting (99).Successful partnership formation depends on flexibility, shared decision‐making, and relationships (100).Credentialed expertise and lived expertise of incarceration are equally valuable for research (96).
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype: Article
      src: R
    language: English
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