Perceptions of Risk in Research Participation STIs and teen pregnancy rates continue to be high among adolescents, and there is a dire need for research on adolescent reproductive health. However, institutional review board (IRB) members are concerned about the use of adolescent participants in research on sensitive topics. Researchers, aware of these concerns, are hesitant to include adolescent samples in their research. Currently, no empirical research guides the assessment of risk to adolescent participants in sensitive research leaving both IRBs and researchers without guidance in this area. A mixed method study of adolescents'perceptions of the risk of participation in research studies is proposed to determine how a variety of factors, including age and ethnicity, are related to adolescents'perceptions of risk and experiences of harm. The study will also assess IRB members'perceptions of the risks adolescent participants face and compare risks IRB members perceive to risks adolescents perceive and to adolescents'actual experiences of study participation. Using data gathered from current IRB member and adolescent samples, the Specific Aims of this study are: 1) to assess IRB members'(N=165) perceptions of risk for adolescents associated with participation in sensitive research and to evaluate the relationships between risk perceptions and demographic and attitudinal characteristics;2) to assess adolescents'(N=525) perceptions of risk regarding their participation in sensitive research as well as their actual experiences of being asked sensitive questions in a study environment, and to evaluate the relationships between their risk perceptions, actual experiences, and demographic and attitudinal characteristics;and 3) to compare IRB members'perceptions of risk for adolescents'participation to adolescents'perceived risks of participation and their actual experiences of participation. This study will involve a comprehensive analysis of multidimensional data. Standard multivariate methods will be used to conduct quantitative analyses assessing group differences and independent predictors, and standard qualitative methods will be integrated to supplement and extend quantitative analyses. Because there is minimal research on this topic, this study is anticipated to have national impact. These analyses will provide much needed information about the risks of adolescent participation in studies on sensitive topics, enable us more accurately to determine adolescents most at risk for experiencing distress when participating in such studies, and assist in assuring that protections are optimized in research relying on adolescent samples.
The goal of this project is to provide much-needed information about adolescents'risks when participating in research studies on sensitive topics. The study will offer empirical directions on how to design research studies optimizing protections for adolescent participants.
