142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition

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303866
Role of religion and social support in willingness to participate in future research among a national sample of African Americans and Latinos

142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition (November 15 - November 19, 2014): http://www.apha.org/events-and-meetings/annual
Tuesday, November 18, 2014 : 3:10 PM - 3:30 PM

Mary A. Garza, PhD, MPH , Department of Behavioral and Community Health, Maryland Center for Health Equity, School of Public Health, University of Maryland College Park, College Park, MD
Luciana Assini, MS , Department of Behavioral and Community Health, University of Maryland, School of Public Health, College Park, MD
Sandra C. Quinn, PhD , Department of Family Science, University of Maryland, School of Public Health, College Park, MD
Kevin H. Kim, PhD , Department of Psychology in Education, University of Pittsburgh, School of Education, Pittsburgh, PA
Erica T. Casper, MA , Maryland Center for Health Equity, University of Maryland School of Public Health, College Park, MD
James Butler III, DrPH, MEd , Department of Behavioral & Community Health, University of Maryland Center for Health Equity, University of Maryland School of Public Health, College Park, MD
Craig S. Fryer, DrPH, MPH , School of Public Health, University of Maryland, College Park, MD
Stephen B. Thomas, PhD, FAAHB , Department of Health Services Administration, Center for Health Equity, University of Maryland School of Public Health, College Park, MD
Background:  The underrepresentation of minorities in research is well documented. Religiousness and social support are central to the lives of many Americans, and churches have taken an active role in shaping the health behaviors of their congregants.  Research suggests that religiousness and social support may play an important role in the effort to eliminate health disparities; thus, we examined these constructs in the context of research participation.  Methods: We conducted a random household telephone survey of 2,455 African Americans (N=1191) and Latinos (N=1264). The survey included valid standardized instruments designed to assess research knowledge, human subjects' protections, previous participation in research, social support, and religiousness. Results: African Americans were more religious than Latinos (p < .001) and also had significantly more social support from family and friends ( p < .001). There was a significant prediction of willingness to participate in a future medical study by race/ethnicity, religiosity, and social support after adjusting for demographic variables (p < .001). Latinos were 63% more likely to participate in a future medical study than African Americans, given similar religiosity score. As the religiosity of participants increased, they were 23% more likely to participate in future research. Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first study to examine the associations between race/ethnicity, religiousness and social support in the context of research participation among African Americans and Latinos. A better understanding of the role of religiousness and social support may be pivotal in increasing research participation and developing intervention strategies to address health disparities.

Learning Areas:

Diversity and culture
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Public health or related research
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
Explain the role of religiousness and social support in research participation. Describe the racial/ethnic differences of religiousness and social support in research participation. Discuss the role of faith-based institutions in research participation.

Keyword(s): Health Disparities/Inequities, Faith Community

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am a co-investigator on this study titled “Building Trust between Minorities and Researchers.” This research involves assessing the prevailing perceptions, knowledge and attitudes toward participation in biomedical research among Latinos and African Americans. I have been a principal investigator and co-investigator on numerous federally funded grants. My research activities encompass intervention research using a community-based approach. I have a strong research interest in the influence of religion and spirituality on health outcomes.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.