Recruiting African American Men into eHealth Weight Management Interventions

This study examined 1) African American men’s access to technology, 2) recruitment strategies to enroll them into eHealth weight management interventions, 3) the recruitment strategies used by different age groups.  A survey was completed by 311 AA men. Mean age was 37.02±14.86, and age group distribution was: 18-29 (42%), 30-50 (32%), and 51+ (26%).  Most owned laptops (65%) and smartphones (65%).  The Internet was accessed from home (68%), smartphones (68%), at work (46%), and public libraries (34%).  Men were asked to choose “all that apply” from 13 recruitment strategies. The top three recruitment strategies were friends/family (50%), email (37%), and referral by a health provider.  A multinomial regression model examined the association between age group and the recruitment strategies.  Compared to those 18-29, those 51+ were more likely to be recruited via church (OR=3.53, P=.003),community events (OR=3.00, P=.038), and health provider referral (OR=2.49, P=.012); however, they were less likely to be recruited via Facebook (OR=4.03, P=.001), flyers (OR=4.66, P<.01), and at work (OR=8.39, P<.000).  In addition, compared to those 30-50, those 51+ were more likely to be recruited via church (OR=3.50, P=.004), but were less likely to be recruited via Facebook (OR=2.66, P=.026) and at work (OR=5.20, P<.001).  The study suggests that age group may be one important factor to consider when recruiting AA men into eHealth weight management interventions.  Older men can be recruited primarily at church and younger age groups can be recruited via Facebook and at work.