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Accepted for/Published in: Journal of Medical Internet Research

Date Submitted: Aug 7, 2020
Date Accepted: Apr 19, 2021

The final, peer-reviewed published version of this preprint can be found here:

Engaging Institutional Stakeholders to Develop and Implement Guidelines for Recruiting Participants in Research Studies Using Social Media: Mixed Methods, Multi-Phase Process

Flood-Grady E, Solberg LB, Baralt C, Meyer M, Stevens J, Krieger JL

Engaging Institutional Stakeholders to Develop and Implement Guidelines for Recruiting Participants in Research Studies Using Social Media: Mixed Methods, Multi-Phase Process

J Med Internet Res 2021;23(10):e23312

DOI: 10.2196/23312

PMID: 34623319

PMCID: 8538033

Warning: This is an author submission that is not peer-reviewed or edited. Preprints - unless they show as "accepted" - should not be relied on to guide clinical practice or health-related behavior and should not be reported in news media as established information.

Engaging Institutional Stakeholders to Develop and Implement Guidelines for Recruiting Participants in Research Studies using Social Media

  • Elizabeth Flood-Grady; 
  • Lauren B. Solberg; 
  • Claire Baralt; 
  • Meghan Meyer; 
  • Jeff Stevens; 
  • Janice L. Krieger

ABSTRACT

Background:

Limited regulatory guidance surrounding the use of social media channels for participant recruitment is an interdisciplinary challenge. Establishing stakeholder-informed, replicable procedures for using social media in research recruitment is essential to ethically and effectively recruiting research participants.

Objective:

The purpose of this paper is to describe our process for engaging stakeholders at our institution to develop and implement guidelines for the use of social media to recruit participants into research studies.

Methods:

We used multiple research methods to engage representatives from institutional offices (Institutional review board, general counsel, privacy and security) and subject-matter experts to develop and implement social media recruitment policies and procedures (P&P).

Results:

Our results include a stakeholder-informed social media recruitment P&P; a transparent, replicable process for administrators at other institutions to use to develop and implement P&P that meets their needs.

Conclusions:

Our P&P allow teams to harness the potential of social media to increase study participation and recruitment; the transparent, stakeholder-informed, replicable process enables administrators at other institutions to facilitate the development of P&P the meets the interests and needs of their research community and institution.


 Citation

Please cite as:

Flood-Grady E, Solberg LB, Baralt C, Meyer M, Stevens J, Krieger JL

Engaging Institutional Stakeholders to Develop and Implement Guidelines for Recruiting Participants in Research Studies Using Social Media: Mixed Methods, Multi-Phase Process

J Med Internet Res 2021;23(10):e23312

DOI: 10.2196/23312

PMID: 34623319

PMCID: 8538033

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