ABSTRACT
Powerlessness, for both disadvantaged and advantaged populations, is a key element in health-risk behavior, especially substance use and abuse (Petoskey et al., 1998; Rissel et al., 1996; Wallerstein & Sanchez-Merki, 1994). Recognizing that a sense of personal efficacy is an important step in addressing health risks (Witte, 1994), researchers have begun to transition from traditional health promotion research paradigms, in which researchers develop and deliver prevention and intervention programs, to paradigms in which the culture and learning styles of the recipients are reflected, and the community included, in the development and dissemination of the health-risk programs (Wallerstein et al., 2004; Wallerstein & Sanchez-Merki, 1994).
