The Fallacy of Community-Based Research.

Simar S Bajaj, Jaeah Kim, Fatima Cody Stanford

Abstract readEditorial

In one paragraph

Article in Journal of general internal medicine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it

0cells of the map it votes in

0citing papers in PubMed

–field-weighted citation impact

1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Simar S BajajStanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, CA, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-8498-9674

Jaeah KimStanford University, Palo Alto, CA, USA.

Fatima Cody StanfordMassachusetts General Hospital, MGH Weight Center, Department of Medicine-Division of Endocrinology-Neuroendocrine, Department of Pediatrics-Division of Endocrinology, Nutrition Obesity Research Center at Harvard (NORCH), Harvard Medical School, Weight Center, 50 Staniford Street, 4th Floor, Boston, MA, USA. fstanford@mgh.harvard.edu.

Funding

ROLE OF DIETARY CONSTITUENTS ON GENE EXPRESSION IN INTESTINAL EPITHELIUMP30DK040561 · NIDDK · MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL · PI Elizabeth Austen Lawson, Takara Leah Stanley · 1994 to 2026

$31.6M

Creating Opportunities for Unparalleled Researchers to Achieve Growth and Excellence (COURAGE)U24DK132733 · NIDDK · MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL HOSPITAL · PI MORONE, NATALIA E., STANFORD, FATIMA CODY · 2022 to 2025

$3.3M

NIDDK NIH HHS P30 DK040561NIDDK NIH HHS U24 DK132733

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Community-based research offers the promise of equitable partnerships between researchers and historically marginalized communities, but its potential is often undercut by superficial engagement, rigid institutional structures, and systemic inequities in funding and representation. This essay explores the ethical, procedural, and structural shortcomings of current community-based research practices, highlighting the disconnect between stated goals and actual implementation. It calls for reforms to institutional review boards and funding processes, emphasizing the need for sustained community engagement, power-sharing, and accountability. By reimagining research as a collaborative, long-term partnership, the scientific community can move toward more just and effective public health outcomes.

Indexed as

Community-Based Participatory ResearchHumansPublic Health

Identifiers

PMID40627096

DOI10.1038/d41586-025-00703-1

PMCPMC12894545

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata

Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.