The IPA was awarded the 2022-2023 Global Church Member Survey. We have completed analyzing the data and have submitted the report for this survey. Questions and analysis focus on a wide variety of beliefs, practices, and health. We continue analysis from the 2017-2018 survey and plan to present at a session of the annual meeting of the Religious Research Association/Society for the Scientific Study of Religion. The published reports can be accessed here.
We work with a wide variety of Ministries of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, primarily with Health Ministries but we also regularly work with NAD & GC Family Ministries, and Offices of Education. In working with these ministries, we prepare professional/scientific presentations and publications for the scientific and faith community.
The IPA is working with the Health Ministries of the General Conference to evaluate the Youth Alive program. A recent article can be found here, "Trauma and Substance Abuse in Teens"
The IPA has conducted 5 of these surveys, occuring about every 5-7 years since 1995. The most recent survey was completed in March of 2023. We now have an integrated file which is used to analyze and examine trends in health risk behaviors as well as changes in risk and protective factors. Presentations have been made by Faculty and Students from the data to the Michigan Academy of Arts, Science and Letters, American Public Helath Association, American Socialigical Association and National Council on Family Relations. Resulting in national and research awards for the students. In recent years, we presented the Keynote address from the Michigan Academy of Science, Arts and Letters from these data entitled: "Trends in Substance Use in a Prohibitionist University Compared to General College Populations" or "Macro Secular Trends Amidst the Unfolding Hegelian Dialectic"
Course Theme: Research data shows the family is often involved where behavioral problems are prevented, initiated and terminated. Addiction is an example of this. Any profession that works with families will need to know how addiction affects families and what can be done to strengthen families to address addiction.
This project was conducted with the United Way of Southwest Michigan. The purpose of the project was to better understand the priorities of community members in Southwestern Michigan. When discussions among businesses, nonprofits, government, and philanthropic organizations take place concerning community impact, a key voice is often left out of the conversation: members directly representing different groups in the community who have active roles in creating effective and lasting community solutions. To address this gap, the United Way conducted 15 focus groups and collected 159 surveys to explore community concerns, needs, and priorities. Curt VanderWaal led a team of 26 Master’s level students in the analysis of these data and then wrote a comprehensive report that has been distributed to community groups for discussion and development of funding and policy priorities.
The Region IV Area Agency on Aging (AAA) partnered with the regional healthcare system, Corewell Health South, to address the challenges and barriers that exist in the complex care ecosystem for older adults in Berrien, Cass, and Van Buren counties in Michigan. The overall goal of the CoC is to create a person-centered community of care that integrates medical interventions with home-based support and services to serve complex care older adults who are over age 65. Curt VanderWaal and his evaluation team are coordinating the mixed-method evaluation of this multi-year intervention through a series of surveys, focus groups, and clinical data analyses to examine the outcomes of this program.