Promotores as Researchers: Expanding the Promotor Role in Community-Based Research

Abstract

The community health worker, known as promotor in the Hispanic community, is an accepted member of the public health team whose core role is that of bridging target communities with health services. However, the promotor's role in research has not been considered a core function of their work. This article will present the promotor in the additional role of researcher, as conceived by the Migrant Clinicians Network for the Hombres Unidos Contra La Violencia Familiar (Men United Against Family Violence) sexual violence/intimate partner violence project. The Hombres Unidos project used promotores as survey facilitators, gathering male Hispanic farmworkers’ perspectives on the sensitive topic of sexual violence and intimate partner violence. This article demonstrates that when trained, the promotores’ linguistic and cultural competence make them a valuable addition to the research team, especially when collecting sensitive information. © 2011, Society for Public Health Education. All rights reserved.