title: Recruiting African American Churches to Participate in Research: The Learning and Developing Individual Exercise Skills for a Better Life Study.
abstract: Physical activity among African Americans (AA) is low; effective intervention strategies are needed. Community-based settings are useful for delivering health-related interventions in racial/ethnic minority communities. This article describes strategies used to recruit churches for participation in a 22-month intervention designed to increase physical activity levels in AA women. Initial recruitment efforts, led by AA study staff, included direct mailers, phone calls, and in-person meetings with church representatives. After 10 months, only five churches were enrolled. Seven community members with existing partnerships/contacts in the faith community were subsequently hired and an additional 26 churches were enrolled within 6 months. Overall response rate was 45%, and churches required 3.5 ± 3.0 months of multiple contacts prior to enrollment. The main primary contacts within churches were individuals with personal interest in the program and pastors. Prior relationship between the research team and churches did not appear to influence church enrollment as much as community member recruiters. The current study identifies several potential strategies that may be useful for increasing success in efforts to recruit AA churches into studies. Additional research is warranted that tests and compares a variety of recruitment strategies to determine the most successful strategies for recruitment in different populations.
authors.affiliation: Gramercy Research Group, Winston-Salem, NC, USA mwhittglover@gramercyresearch.com.
authors.forename: Melicia C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Whitt-Glover
authors.affiliation: Gramercy Research Group, Winston-Salem, NC, USA East Carolina University, Greenville, NC, USA.
authors.forename: Shanice L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Borden
authors.affiliation: Gramercy Research Group, Winston-Salem, NC, USA UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, Asheville, NC, USA.
authors.forename: Dayna S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Alexander
authors.affiliation: Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Baton Rouge, LA, USA.
authors.forename: Betty M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Kennedy
authors.affiliation: Lane College, Jackson, TN, USA.
authors.forename: Moses V
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: Goldmon
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American; D015444:Exercise; D005260:Female; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009657:North Carolina; D018579:Patient Selection; D012068:Religion and Medicine
keywords: Black/African American; church; intervention; physical activity; recruitment