title: Racial Differences Among Factors Associated with Participation in Clinical Research Trials.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To identify whether racial differences exist among various factors associated with patients' decision to participate in clinical research trials.
  
  
  METHODS
  A self-administered, IRB-approved survey was utilized with inclusion criteria requiring subjects to be 18 years of age or older, having active patient status and ability to complete the survey without assistance. Subjects were asked to rate potential influential motivators, barriers, and facilitators on a "no influence" (0) to "most influence" (4) scale for participation in research that tests a new drug or device. Kruskal-Wallis testing was used to identify factors significantly associated with race.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Analysis included 1643 surveys: 949 (57.8 %) Caucasian; 217 (13.2 %) African-American; 317 (19.3 %) Hispanic; 62 (3.8 %) Multiracial; and 98 (6.0 %) "Other" minorities. Statistically significant differences (p ≤ .02) by race were found for five out of ten motivating factors. "How well the research study is explained to me" had the highest mean value for all races except other minorities, for whom "Knowledge learned from my participation will benefit someone in the future" scored highest. "Risk of unknown side-effects" was the greatest barrier for all races.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Racial differences exist not only between Caucasians and Minorities for the factors associated with their clinical trial participation, but also among different minority races themselves. To promote diversity in research, recruitment strategies for each individual race should be customized based on what matters to the target population.
authors.affiliation: Lehigh Valley Health Network, Cedar Crest Boulevard and I-78, Allentown, PA, 18103, USA. Anita.Kurt@lvhn.org.|EM Research, LVHN-Muhlenberg, 4th Floor, 2545 Schoenersville Road, Bethlehem, PA, 18107, USA. Anita.Kurt@lvhn.org.
authors.forename: Anita
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kurt
authors.affiliation: Lehigh Valley Health Network, Cedar Crest Boulevard and I-78, Allentown, PA, 18103, USA.
authors.forename: Lauren
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Semler
authors.affiliation: Lehigh Valley Health Network, Cedar Crest Boulevard and I-78, Allentown, PA, 18103, USA.
authors.forename: Jeanne L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Jacoby
authors.affiliation: Lehigh Valley Health Network, Cedar Crest Boulevard and I-78, Allentown, PA, 18103, USA.
authors.forename: Melanie B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.affiliation: Lehigh Valley Health Network, Cedar Crest Boulevard and I-78, Allentown, PA, 18103, USA.
authors.forename: Beth A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Careyva
authors.affiliation: Lehigh Valley Health Network, Cedar Crest Boulevard and I-78, Allentown, PA, 18103, USA.
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Stello
authors.affiliation: Lehigh Valley Health Network, Cedar Crest Boulevard and I-78, Allentown, PA, 18103, USA.
authors.forename: Timothy
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Friel
authors.affiliation: Lehigh Valley Health Network, Cedar Crest Boulevard and I-78, Allentown, PA, 18103, USA.
authors.forename: Mark C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Knouse
authors.affiliation: Lehigh Valley Health Network, Cedar Crest Boulevard and I-78, Allentown, PA, 18103, USA.
authors.forename: Hope
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kincaid
authors.affiliation: Lehigh Valley Health Network, Cedar Crest Boulevard and I-78, Allentown, PA, 18103, USA.
authors.forename: John C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Smulian
keywords: Clinical trial participation; Disparities in research; Diversity in research; Influencing factors in subject participation; Minority research participation; Racial differences