ArticleSocial science & medicine (1982)2018
Improving recruitment to clinical trials during pregnancy: A mixed methods investigation.
Article in Social science & medicine (1982), 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 29 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
29 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 46 citations in OpenAlex.
- Factors influencing the participation of pregnant and lactating women in clinical trials: A mixed-methods systematic review.PLoS medicine · 2024Pooled it
- Trial
- Tranexamic acid for the prevention of postpartum haemorrhage: the TAPPH-1 pilot randomized trial and lessons learned for trials in Canadian obstetrics.Scientific reports · 2023Trial
- Trial
- Recruiting men from across the socioeconomic spectrum via GP registers and community outreach to a weight management feasibility randomised controlled trial.BMC medical research methodology · 2020Trial
- Characteristics Associated With Consent and Reasons for Declining in a Randomized Trial in Pregnancy.Obstetrics and gynecology · 2020Trial
- A Formative Evaluation of Parental Perceptions Related to Acceptability, Appropriateness, Feasibility, and Reported Use of an e-Learning Resource Targeting Diet in the First 1000 Days: Survey Study.JMIR formative research · 2026Article
- A Brief Intervention for the Treatment of Anxiety in Pregnancy: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial (The TAP Study).Psychotherapy and psychosomatics · 2026Article
- Enhancing the Implementation of a high-quality randomized trial in pregnancy.Research square · 2026Article
- Facilitators of and barriers to participation in Long COVID research: A qualitative analysis.PloS one · 2026Article
- Feasibility and acceptability of conducting a birth cohort study during the COVID-19 pandemic: a mixed-methods study.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2025Article
- What influences women's decisions to participate in trials for prevention of venous thromboembolism during pregnancy and the puerperium: a qualitative study.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2025Article
- Factors Influencing Pregnant Women's Participation in Randomised Clinical Trials in India: A Qualitative Study.BJOG : an international journal of obstetrics and gynaecology · 2025Article
- Effects of fermented and fiber-rich foods on maternal & offspring microbiome study (FeFiFo-MOMS) - Study design and methods.Contemporary clinical trials · 2025Article
- Identifying Fraudulent Responses in a Study Exploring Delivery Options for Pregnancies Impacted by Gestational Diabetes: Lessons Learned From a Web-Based Survey.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Article
- Proxies of Trustworthiness: A Novel Framework to Support the Performance of Trust in Human Health Research.Journal of bioethical inquiry · 2024Article
- Article
- Prenatal and postnatal drug exposure: focus on persistent central effects.Neural regeneration research · 2023Review
- Peripartum women's perspectives on research study participation in the OneFlorida Clinical Research Consortium during COVID-19 pandemic.Journal of clinical and translational science · 2023Article
- Emesis in pregnancy - a qualitative study on trial recruitment failure from the EMPOWER internal pilot.Pilot and feasibility studies · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
12 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveTo identify reasons underlying women's refusal to participate in a pregnancy trial and to identify ways of increasing recruitment.
designMixed methods study using a questionnaire and qualitative interviews. SAMPLE: A questionnaire asking them to indicate reasons for their decision was completed by 296 pregnant women who declined to participate in one of two trials of nutritional supplementation in a large teaching hospital in southern England. Qualitative interview data were collected from two samples of pregnant women: 1) 30 women who declined to participate in a trial but completed the questionnaire; and 2) 44 women who participated in a trial.
resultsQuestionnaire data from pregnant women who declined to participate suggested the major barriers to participation were study requirements, including taking study medication, having a bone scan or blood tests, or being too busy. Thematic analysis of interview data identified differences in self-efficacy and levels of trust in medical research between participants and decliners. Participants believed that the research would cause no harm, while decliners felt they or their unborn child would be at risk. When faced with potential obstacles, participants found ways around them while decliners felt they were insurmountable.
conclusionsRecruitment methods for pregnancy trials should focus on building women's trust in the trial, and on enhancing women's self-efficacy so they feel able to meet trial requirements. Suggestions for building trust include investing time in open, honest discussion of the risks and benefits of participation, improving visibility of the research team, testimonials from previous participants and advertising study safety and ethical conduct. Self-efficacy can be enhanced by training research staff in empowering styles of communication enabling women to feel heard and supported to problem-solve. These strategies could be implemented relatively easily into pregnancy trial protocols, and their effectiveness tested through their impact on recruitment rates.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.