ARCHES | AmeRicans’ Conceptions of Health Equity Study
is a two-phase research study that explores how Americans of diverse backgrounds think about one key question:
Whose health deserves society’s attention, investment, or care?
ARCHES asks:
1. How do individual Americans think about what we, and others, deserve in the health domain?
2. How might our personal views, values, and experiences affect our
- health behavior,
- perspectives on health disparities,
- sense of interconnectedness, or
- civic involvement?
3. How might our perspectives on these issues change over time?
In our first phase, ARCHES researchers pursue these questions by engaging residents of Northeast Ohio using interviews (170 in total) and ethnographic methods. In the second phase, qualitative findings will be tested in a national survey of ~3,000 Americans.
Overall, ARCHES aims to generate findings that can 1) deepen understanding of Americans’ perspectives on health and fairness, and 2) help shape communication and policymaking around these key issues.
ARCHES is based at the University of Connecticut and funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.