title: Willingness of pregnant women to participate in a birth cohort study in China.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the willingness of pregnant women in Guangzhou, China, to participate in a large-scale birth cohort study.
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional survey was conducted of 526 pregnant women who attended their first prenatal class at Guangzhou Women and Children's Medical Center, Guangzhou, China, between September 21 and November 15, 2011. Information on demographic characteristics, willingness to participate, and preferences regarding collection procedures and incentives were analyzed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In all, 47.9% of the women were willing to participate in a birth cohort study, whereas 23.0% refused and 29.1% were unsure. The majority of the women willing to participate (95.2%-98.4%) accepted the use of non-invasive data collection methods except for stool collection, and 85.9% would allow their offspring to participate in long-term follow-up. Willingness to participate rose to 85.2% when non-monetary incentives were offered. The most popular incentive was assessment of child development.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The willingness of pregnant Chinese women to participate in long-term observational research was similar to that reported in high-income countries. Non-monetary incentives improved their level of willingness, a finding that might inform future maternal and child health research in low- and middle-income countries.
authors.affiliation: Division of Birth Cohort Study, Guangzhou Women and Children's Medical Center, Guangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Xiu
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Qiu
authors.forename: Jianrong
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Lan
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Qiu
authors.forename: Charles P
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Larson
authors.forename: Huimin
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Xia
authors.forename: Kin-Bong H
authors.initials: KB
authors.lastname: Lam
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002681:China; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003625:Data Collection / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D018579:Patient Selection; D011247:Pregnancy; D045808:Refusal to Participate / Q000523:psychology*; D012107:Research Design; D035842:Research Subjects / Q000523:psychology*; D013048:Specimen Handling / Q000379:methods; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Birth cohort study; Enrollment; Incentive; Low- and middle-income countries; Pregnancy; Willingness to participate