Applied Research Briefs Factors Which Explain Amount of Participation in Rural Adolescent Alcohol Use Prevention Task Forces Christopher Rissel, John Finnegan, Mark Wolfson, Cheryl Perry PURPOSE A major component of community-based health promotion programs is the organization of coalitions or local task forces. Although definitions of coalitions and community task forces vary considerably, in general they are groups of community members working together to achieve a common goal. Coalitions and task forces can serve multiple functions in a health promotion program, including acting as direct linkages from outside agencies to communities, enhancing ownership and continuation of programs, and assisting in mobilizing community residents and resources to achieve program objectives. 1 The number of hours per month, or amount of time spent participating in task force activities is generally thought to be theoretically and practically related to their effective functioning. 2 More time contributed means greater investment in and subsequent ownership of the task forces, and greater capacity to mobilize resources to achieve program objectives. Participation in coalitions or task forces has not been studied extensively in health promotion. 24 Studies of participation in the political science, community psychol- ogy, and soci,.ology literatures suggest that gender, marital status, length of residence, commitment to a neighborhood, membership in other voluntary organiza- tions, education, and socioeconomic status are associated with participation in urban block organizations and social action groups. 5-7 Social psychological variables associated with participation include perceived personal influence, sense of community, the importance of the neighborhood, and sense of political efficacy. 7 While citizen participation is generally acknowledged to be desirable in health promotion efforts, 8 until recently there has been surprisingly little data on who participates and what factors are associated with partici- pation in health promotion coalitions. It is not clear how Christopher Rissel, Ph.D., M.P.H., is now a Research Associ- ate at the University of Bielefeld, Bielefeld, Germany. John Finnegan, Jr., Ph.D., is an Associate Professor, Mark Wolfson, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor, and Cheryl Perry, Ph.D., is a Professor at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. well knowledge gained from studies of urban neighbor- hood organizations applies in rural settings. Also, many studies which examined issues of participation in urban planning or health care delivery were conducted in the ’60s and ’70s in a social environment that is different from the 1990s. This study explored participation in community task forces as part of a communitywide program in northeast Minnesota focusing on the prevention of adolescent alcohol use--Project Northland. 9 Project Northland is a five-year communitywide research program funded by the National Institute on Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse (1990-1995). There are three major components Project Northland: school and peer-led curricula, parent- involvement activities, and community-based activities. A more complete description of project components and their theoretical basis can be found in Perry et al? The objectives of the present study were to answer several questions about participation in Project Northland task forces: ¯ Who are task force members? ¯ What community sectors do these people represent? ¯ How satisfied are task force members with their participation? ¯ What factors are associated with amount of participa- tion? METHODS Design A cross-sectional survey design was used to describe participants of task forces as well as to identify factors associated with greater participation. This is useful information for planners and organizers of community task forces. It can assist in recruitment efforts and the facilitation of effective task forces. Direction of causal relationships between independent variables and the amount of participation can not be inferred with this study design. Task force members were interviewed by telephone in the fall of 1992. Sample Data were collected from all eligible adult members of January/February 1995, Vol. 9, No.3 169