The proliferation of biobanks has created new opportunities for researchers to conduct cutting-edge research that was not possible a decade ago. However, researchers are concerned about the applicability of the new knowledge gained to racially diverse subgroups because African American (AA) participation in biobanking research is low. This study assessed how attitudes and subjective norms influenced intentions to participate in biobanking research among AA college students at a university in the southern US. Ajzen and Fishbein’s Theory of Reasoned Action guided the research design.

Methods: An exploratory sequential mixed-method design was employed to collect data over a six-month period. A total of 27 AA participants participated in phase I (qualitative open-ended questionnaire) to identify salient behavioral and normative beliefs. In phase II, 105 AA participants completed the newly-developed quantitative survey designed to evaluate four theory-driven hypotheses.

Results: The twelve behavioral beliefs identified significantly correlated with attitude except one. In regression analysis, attitude had a statistically significant association with intention to participate in biobanking (B=0.68, p <.0001). Two behavioral beliefs, “making medical treatment better” (B=0.59, p <.0001) and “helping to find cures to diseases” (B=0.52, p <.0004), showed statistically significant association with attitude. None of the ten identified normative referents showed significant association.

Conclusion: Attitude was the major determinant of intention, and as attitude increased, the intentions to participate in biobanking increased. Therefore, health promotion messages to increase participation in biobank among AA should target strengthening the beliefs that participation will help improve medical treatment and find cures for diseases.