Father Recruitment and Retention in Longitudinal Research: A Quantitative and Qualitative Analysis

This presentation will describe a literature analysis that examined recruitment and retention data and procedures from longitudinal studies that included fathers, focusing both on pitfalls and pathways to success. We identified relevant studies; calculated and examined recruitment and retention rates for fathers; ranked studies on their effectiveness in these areas; and explored practices associated with effectiveness. Ultimately, effective studies reach out to fathers personally, value fathers' time, and employ sophisticated methods to track and engage participants. These findings are being used to develop formative research, whose results will guide the NCS Main Study.