JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

There is a pressing need to address the unacceptable disparities and underrepresentation of racial/ethnic minority groups, including Hispanics/Latinxs, in smoking cessation trials.

Objective:

Given the lack of research on recruitment strategies for this population, this study assessed effective recruitment methods based on enrollment and cost

Methods:

Recruitment and enrollment data were collected from a nationwide randomized controlled trial (RCT) of a Spanish-language smoking cessation intervention (N = 1,417). The effectiveness of each recruitment strategy was evaluated by computing cost-per-participant (CPP), which is a ratio of direct cost over number enrolled. More effective strategies yielded lower CPP. Demographic and smoking-related characteristics of participants recruited via the two most effective strategies were also compared (n = 1,307).

Results:

Facebook was the most effective method (CPP = $74.12), followed by television (TV) ads (CPP = $191.31), whereas public bus signage was the least effective (CPP = $642.50). Participants recruited via TV ads had a higher average age (p = .008) and number of years living in the United States (p < .001), fewer individuals with high school education (p = .001) and with an annual household income above $10,000 (p < .001), and also had fewer employed (p < .001) and foreign-born (p = .003). In terms of sub-ethnicity, participants recruited via TV had more individuals of Mexican (p < .001) and fewer of Central American (p = .02), South American (p = .01), and Cuban origin (p < .001).

Conclusions:

Facebook was the most effective method for recruiting Hispanic/Latinx smokers in the United States for this RCT. However, using multiple methods was necessary to recruit a more diverse sample of Spanish-preferring Hispanic/Latinx smokers. Clinical Trial: clinicaltrials.gov NCT02945787