Changes in research competency of public health personnel following an empowerment-based capacity development program in Thailand: a convergent parallel mixed-methods study

Introduction

Research competency among frontline public health personnel is a prerequisite for evidence-informed local health systems, yet most capacity-building programs in low- and middle-income settings are short didactic courses that are rarely evaluated with both outcome and process data. This study examined changes in self-reported research competency among public health personnel who completed an Empowerment-Based Capacity Development Program designed to convert routine public health work into publishable research, and explored how participants themselves accounted for those changes. The quantitative outcome sits at Kirkpatrick level 2 (self-reported learning) and the qualitative strand adds level 1 (reaction); neither strand reaches level 3 (behavior) or level 4 (results). The evaluation is presented as preliminary implementation and feasibility evidence rather than as an effectiveness trial.