User:Ajclough09/Positive Deviance Approach

Introduction
The Positive Deviance Approach (PD) presents an explanation as to why people solve problems with uncommon; unconventional solutions. Specifically, PD provides better results than others. It is important to note that deviance is a behavior that is out of the norm. The norm being abiding by societal rules placed on us. PD says that participating in deviant behavior can lead to not only a positive outcome, but an even better outcome than if you were to not participate in the deviant behavior.

The PD approach can be summarized into six steps, called the six "D's":


 * 1) Define the problem
 * 2) Determine if there are any positive deviants
 * 3) Discover replicable behaviors of the deviants
 * 4) Design a treatment to apply the solution
 * 5) Disseminate the results

These six steps can be applied to any case of PD, and has been many times, which is what makes PD a very usable approach in everyday life.

Background and History
From American Poet and four-time Pulitzer Prize winner Robert Lee Frost's first interpretation of the phenomena, the idea of solving widespread issues with unheard-overlooked solutions became a starting point for much scholarly discussion. Since the turn of the century, the continued use of the PD approach has given a new look at the world as we know it.

The first known and recorded use of the approach was that of US academics Monique and Jerry Sternin's time in Vietnam. The duo's focus was directed at how the poorest of communities in the country would contain some of the healthiest children, avoiding the malnutrition that was prevalent. A flip-sided approach from the community's families to feeding their children was more successful than what the general population had been doing.

Through the use of seafood and other foods of nutritional value, these communities found a valuable way to keep generations healthy that had not yet been adapted by others throughout the region. The methods used in Vietnam were published by both of the scholars, joined by Pascale Richard in 2010, titled The Power of Positive Deviance: How Unlikely Innovators Solve the World's Toughest Problems.

Positive Deviance Strengths
Positive Deviance (PD) is an approach to behavioral and social change based on the observation that in any community there are people whose uncommon but successful behaviors or strategies enable them to find better solutions to a problem than their peers, despite facing similar challenges and having no extra resources or knowledge than their peers. These individuals are referred to as Positive Deviants.

Positive Deviance is perhaps better thought of as a positive mindset rather than a model or theory.

Its strengths are in simplicity, widespread applicability, and brevity.

The approach is ideal for facing an intractable problem requiring a solution that includes social and behavioral change.

Dec. 5, 1955 - Dec. 20,1956. The Montgomery Bus Boycott was a political and social protest campaign against the policy of racial segregation on the public transit system of Montgomery, Alabama.

By mid-November 1956 the US Supreme Court- basing its decision on the 14th Amendment's guarantee of equal protection under the law- ruled that segregated public buses were unconstitutional.

M.L.K. Was designated as the leader of this boycott and many other protests which changed the social behavior and mindset of the U.S. and abroad.

His methods were simple, brief, and effective. He is the epitome of a Positive Deviant. Although some considered his tactics weak, time has proven that like most deviant strategies, they are in fact strong. The real and lasting strength is as stated in the definition, his methods had widespread applicability.

Positive Deviance Weaknesses
The Positive Deviance Approach has essentially no weaknesses because the theory is centered around taking a negative situation and finding a positive outcome for it. The only weakness that can be attributed to positive deviance is that is still considered relatively new and therefore more experiments need to be carried out for better research. Once this occurs and more time passes it will be easier to discover what weaknesses the Positive Deviance approach truly has if there is any.

Applying Positive Deviance
The Positive Deviance theory is a highly applicable concept that stretches through communities throughout the world, especially in marginalized and low socioeconomic areas. The basis of the theory is seen in the day-to-day struggles and adaptations said communities go through in finding solutions for widespread issues, with its origin focusing on childhood malnutrition. The applicability of the theory is highly dependent on the researcher who must put prior bias and standardized knowledge to the side in order to understand and dissect at times highly improbable situations. Many of the cases studied, such as a case in Vietnam, will hit roadblocks when a researcher fails to do this. When conducting a study on PD, many cases stem from an upstream intervention - solutions that aim to prevent problems from happening before the issue arises.

A popular study was carried out by Foster et al. (2018) that aimed to focus on how Latinx communities maintain a healthy weight among two to five-year-olds. Using a mode of mixed analysis study, the researcher found that PD families made it clear to their children what foods they could and could not eat, stocking the pantries with fruits and healthy snacks. These families were especially proactive in moving past their child's picky eating habits in order to expose them to a wider range of foods. Instead of completely eliminating unhealthy snacks, they would rather just limit their consumption. Mothers were able to combat past generations who could possibly have had a bad influence on their kids.

The PD approach in healthcare has been highly effective, with studies being conducted throughout the 80s and 90s that sought to find alternate solutions to medical inconsistencies. There were specifically many cases within nutrition on how sustained approaches can be implemented across the world. Lapping et al. (2002) conducted a study that used past results in Vietnam and Haiti to combat nutritional issues among Afghan refugee children in Pakistan. Using the examples of 12 households, the study observed the feeding habits the families practice, using time and level of consumption to get the most out of the limited food available to them.

The future of the PD approach theory is in health care as many international organizations are looking for new solutions to the growth of mental and physical health issues. Teenagers and young adults have utilized these new strategies such as food safety and HIV/AIDS. In Ethiopia, a study was conducted that aimed to provide care for young mothers to provide suitable care for young infants. Positive Deviants in many cases serve as the catalyst for spreading successful forms of care for younger generations.