Evidence-based recruitment strategies for clinical research: Study personnel's and research participants' perceptions about successful methods of outreach for a U.S. Autism-Research Cohort

• Published in: Journal of clinical and translational science Vol. 8; no. 1; p. e65
• Main Authors: Goin-Kochel, Robin P, Lozano, Ivana, Duhon, Gabrielle, Marzano, Gabriela, Daniels, Amy, Law, J Kiely, Diehl, Katharine, Green Snyder, LeeAnne, Feliciano, Pamela, Chung, Wendy K
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Cambridge University Press 2024
• Subjects: Advertising; Autism; Caregivers; Clinical trials; Costs; Electronic health records; Enrollments; Families & family life; parent/caregiver; participant enrollment; Participation; Pediatrics; Perceptions; Public health; Questionnaires; Recruitment; Research Methods and Technology; Research recruitment; Review boards; Social networks; Teams; United States > US; parent/caregiver; Research recruitment; participant enrollment; autism
• ISSN: 2059-8661; 2059-8661
• DOI: 10.1017/cts.2024.512

Under enrollment of participants in clinical research is costly and delays study completion to impact public health. Given that research personnel make decisions about which strategies to pursue and participants are the recipients of these efforts, we surveyed research staff ( = 52) and participants ( = 4,144) affiliated with SPARK (Simons Foundation Powering Autism for Knowledge) - the largest study of autism in the U.S. - to understand their perceptions of effective recruitment strategies. In Study 1, research personnel were asked to report recruitment strategies that they tried for SPARK and to indicate which ones they would and would not repeat/recommend. In Study 2, SPARK participants were asked to indicate all the ways they heard about the study prior to enrollment and which one was most influential in their decisions to enroll. Staff rated Participants most often heard about SPARK via Results suggest that a combination of strategies is likely to be most effective in reaching diverse audiences. Findings have implications for the selection of strategies that meet a study's specific needs, as well as recruitment-strategy "combinations" that may enhance the influence of outreach efforts.