Lessons Learned from Conducting Health Behavior Research in an Under-Resourced, Urban Community

Abstract

Existing literature discusses challenges in conducting community-engaged health behavior interventions. However, discussions associated with the barriers to executing community-engaged health behavior research with vulnerable populations are limited in the literature. This current issue provides lessons learned for the purpose of improving community-engaged research within communities that are under- resourced. The lessons learned stem from challenges with the recruitment and enrollment procedures and study design with a previous qualitative community-engaged research project. The research recommendations proposed are geared toward students preparing to engage in dissertation research and early-stage investigators who are interested in conducting research in under-resourced communities.

Full text

1-8@414-B5;>%1?1->/41-8@414-B5;>%1?1->/4
);8A91
#A9.1>
"1:@;>?45<;88-.;>-@5;:?5:1-8@4
14-B5;>%1?1->/4
>@5/81
"-E
!1??;:?!1->:102>;9;:0A/@5:31-8@414-B5;>%1?1->/45:!1??;:?!1->:102>;9;:0A/@5:31-8@414-B5;>%1?1->/45:
-:(:01>%1?;A>/10(>.-:;99A:5@E-:(:01>%1?;A>/10(>.-:;99A:5@E
1>5 5>7
1;>31@;C:(:5B1>?5@E&/4;;8;2"105/5:1
72731;>31@;C:10A
>5@@-:E&/4A81>
'19<81(:5B1>?5@E
.>5@@-:E?/4A81>@19<8110A
-<4:11>:-:01F
(:5B1>?5@E;2'1D-?1-8@4&/51:/11:@1>-@;A?@;:
0-<4:141>:-:01FA@4@9/10A
;88;C@45?-:0-005@5;:-8C;>7?-@4@@<?:1C<>-5>51<>1??;>34.>
$->@;2@41;99A:5@E$?E/4;8;3E;99;:?-:0@411-8@4$?E/4;8;3E;99;:?
'45?C;>75?85/1:?10A:01>->1-@5B1;99;:?@@>5.A@5;:#;:/;991>/5-8!5/1:?1
%1/;991:0105@-@5;:%1/;991:0105@-@5;:
5>7 1>5&/4A81>>5@@-:E-:01>:-:01F-<4:1!1??;:?!1->:102>;9;:0A/@5:3
1-8@414-B5;>%1?1->/45:-:(:01>%1?;A>/10(>.-:;99A:5@E
1-8@414-B5;>%1?1->/4
);8
#;4@@<?0;5;>3
'45?A>>1:@??A1?5?.>;A34@@;E;A2;>2>11-:0;<1:-//1??.E#1C$>-5>51$>1??@4-?.11:-//1<@102;>
5:/8A?5;:5:1-8@414-B5;>%1?1->/4.E-:-A@4;>5F10-095:5?@>-@;>;2#1C$>-5>51$>1??;>9;>15:2;>9-@5;:
<81-?1/;:@-/@/-0?7?@-@110A

!1??;:?!1->:102>;9;:0A/@5:31-8@414-B5;>%1?1->/45:-:(:01>!1??;:?!1->:102>;9;:0A/@5:31-8@414-B5;>%1?1->/45:-:(:01>
%1?;A>/10(>.-:;99A:5@E%1?;A>/10(>.-:;99A:5@E
.?@>-/@.?@>-/@
D5?@5:385@1>-@A>105?/A??1?/4-881:31?5:/;:0A/@5:3/;99A:5@E1:3-31041-8@4.14-B5;>5:@1>B1:@5;:?
;C1B1>05?/A??5;:?-??;/5-@10C5@4@41.->>51>?@;1D1/A@5:3/;99A:5@E1:3-31041-8@4.14-B5;>
>1?1->/4C5@4BA8:1>-.81<;<A8-@5;:?->18595@105:@4185@1>-@A>1'45?/A>>1:@5??A1<>;B501?81??;:?
81->:102;>@41<A><;?1;259<>;B5:3/;99A:5@E1:3-310>1?1->/4C5@45:/;99A:5@51?@4-@->1A:01>
>1?;A>/10'4181??;:?81->:10?@192>;9/4-881:31?C5@4@41>1/>A5@91:@-:01:>;8891:@<>;/10A>1?
-:0?@A0E01?53:C5@4-<>1B5;A?=A-85@-@5B1/;99A:5@E1:3-310>1?1->/4<>;61/@'41>1?1->/4
>1/;991:0-@5;:?<>;<;?10->131->10@;C->0?@A01:@?<>1<->5:3@;1:3-315:05??1>@-@5;:>1?1->/4-:0
1->8E?@-315:B1?@53-@;>?C4;->15:@1>1?@105:/;:0A/@5:3>1?1->/45:A:01>>1?;A>/10/;99A:5@51?
1EC;>0? 1EC;>0?
/;99A:5@E1:3-310>1?1->/4/;99A:5@E-0B5?;>.;->0/;99A:5@E.-?10<->@5/5<-@;>E>1?1->/41->8E
?@-315:B1?@53-@;>?41-8@4.14-B5;>>1?1->/491:@;>5:3
/7:;C8103191:@?5?/8-591>?5?/8;?A>1?/7:;C8103191:@?5?/8-591>?5?/8;?A>1?
'45?9-:A?/>5<@5?-<>;0A/@;2@4191>5/-:$?E/4;8;35/-8??;/5-@5;:G?!1-01>?45<-:00A/-@5;:
0B-:/191:@$>;3>-9!$2;>5B1>?1&/4;8->?+> 5>7?/4;8->-:0>1>:-:01F91:@;>,>
&/4A81>C-?-2;>91>91:@11;2>1>:-:01F@4>;A34@41%;.1>@*;;0;4:?;:;A:0-@5;:G?#1C
;::1/@5;:$>;3>-9A:05:32;>0-@-/;881/@5;:;2@41;>535:-8?@A0E2>;9C45/4@45?<-<1>C-?
/;:/1<@A-85F10C-?<>;B5010.E@41(:5B1>?5@E;2"->E8-:0&/4;;8;2&;/5-8*;>7$4$>;3>-9@;>
>5@@-:E%&/4A81>'419-:A?/>5<@C-?<>1<->10C5@4?A<<;>@2>;9@41#-@5;:-8:?@5@A@1;:"5:;>5@E
1-8@4-:01-8@45?<->5@51?;2@41#-@5;:-8:?@5@A@1?;21-8@4A:01>C->0#A9.1> "@;
>>5@@-:E%&/4A81>'41/;:@1:@5??;818E@41>1?<;:?5.585@E;2@41-A@4;>?-:00;1?:;@:1/1??->58E
>1<>1?1:@@41;J/5-8B51C?;2@41#-@5;:-8:?@5@A@1?;21-8@4"-:A?/>5<@<>1<->-@5;:C-??A<<;>@10.E
@41;A:0-@5;:2;>;;0-:03>5/A8@A>1%1?1->/4B5-1105:391>5/--:0@41%1?1->/4-:0D@1:?5;:
D<1>51:@5-8!1->:5:32;>(:01>3>-0A-@1%($>;3>-9;2@41#-@5;:-8:?@5@A@1;2;;0-:03>5/A8@A>1
(&>-:@@;>-<4:11>:-:01F'41-A@4;>?0;:;@4-B1/;:I5/@?;2
5:@1>1?@@;05?/8;?1H:-:/5-8;>;@41>C5?1
'45?/A>>1:@5??A1?5?-B-58-.815:1-8@414-B5;>%1?1->/44@@<?:1C<>-5>51<>1??;>34.>B;85??

Lessons Learned from Conducting Health Behavior Research in an
Under-resourced, Urban Community
Keri F. Kirk, PhD*
Brittany R. Schuler, PhD
Daphne C. Hernandez, PhD, MSEd, FAAHB
Abstract
Existing literature discusses challenges in conducting community-engaged health behavior
interventions. However, discussions associated with the barriers to executing community-engaged
health behavior research with vulnerable populations are limited in the literature. This current issue
provides lessons learned for the purpose of improving community-engaged research within
communities that are under-resourced. The lessons learned stem from challenges with the
recruitment and enrollment procedures and study design with a previous qualitative community-
engaged research project. The research recommendations proposed are geared toward students
preparing to engage in dissertation research and early-stage investigators who are interested in
conducting research in under-resourced communities.
*Corresponding author can be reached at: kfk30@georgetown.edu
Introduction
Community-engaged research is a process
of inclusive participation that supports
mutual respect of strategies, values, and
authentic partnerships between an academic
institution and community stakeholders, such
as an agency, an organization, or health care
system (Ahmed & Palermo, 2010). The
partnerships inform all aspects of the
research, and they assist with maximizing the
expertise and resources of all stakeholders
involved (Green et al., 2001). Community-
engaged research is also an effective way to
explore multidimensional experiences and
contexts in depth (Fisher et al., 2019).
Community-engaged research has been
shown to bridge cultural gaps (Fisher et al.,
2019; Saha et al., 2008), enhance the
relevance of the research conducted (Balazs
& Morello-Frosch, 2013), and promote the
sustainability of research in the community
(Fisher et al., 2019). Major health research
institutions, including the National Institutes
of Health, regulate the inclusion of minority
populations to ensure adequate represen-
tation of underrepresented populations in
research studies, due to historic under-
representation and rising health disparities.
However, barriers to recruitment and
engagement persist (Mendoza-Vasconez et
al., 2016; Paskett et al., 2008). Barriers to
recruitment and engagement sometimes
result in studies generating small samples and
findings not deemed to be publishable by the
academic community.
Postdoctoral scholars and junior faculty in
their first years of being an assistant professor
sometimes find themselves in this position
and are unsure what to do with their data.
There is opportunity for senior researchers to
communicate to junior scholars that the
academic community would benefit from
lessons learned and associated research
recommendations through a publication.
Further, providing the opportunities for
undergraduate students to write up lessons
learned from a research study, as publication
1
Kirk et al.: LESSONS LEARNED FOR IMPROVING HEALTH BEHAVIOR RESEARCH
Published by New Prairie Press, 2022

challenges the student to grow and excel in
ways that traditional classroom courses
cannot replicate (Hernandez et al., 2019). For
graduate students and junior faculty scholars,
turning lessons learned into lead-author
publications that address data collection
feasibility is a good opportunity to learn how
to publish study design and research
implementation fundamentals (e.g., Eigege et
al., 2022; Hodgman et al., 2022; Kamdar &
Hernandez, 2022). These types of
publications can inform and improve health
behavior research (Eigege et al., 2022;
Kamdar & Hernandez, 2022), which is
critical to reducing health disparities.
Brief Overview of Original Study and
Who This Current Issue is
Geared Towards
This Current Issue article discusses
lessons learned and associated research
recommendations when conducting research
in under-resourced, urban communities. The
lessons that are described below stem from a
qualitative research project focused on
mothers’ perceptions of how community and
family factors influence the physical activity
and healthy eating behaviors of their
children. Despite multiple follow-up efforts
of the research team, recruitment challenges
limited the sample size. Out of the eight
parents recruited that met all other eligibility
criteria, only two parents completed
interviews out of the originally proposed 5 to
6 parents. Consequently, this impacted the
study outcomes. The research team consisted
of a community partner, community advisory
board (CAB), and a doctoral student who was
collecting the data as a dissertation
requirement. Therefore, the lessons learned
and associated research recommendations
described below are geared toward doctoral
students preparing to engage in dissertation
research, and early-stage investigators who
are interested in community-engaged health
behavior research for the purpose of
addressing health disparities in under-
resourced communities.
Lessons Learned and Research
Recommendations
Recruitment and Enrollment Procedures
Matching on lived experiences. Building
trust and rapport with potential participants is
critical in community-engaged research
(Kumanyika et al., 2007). Rapport is built
more quickly when a research team member
is able to acknowledge similarities with the
potential participants, such as being able to
speak and provide study materials to the
potential participants in their preferred
language (Hodgman et al., 2022), or have
something in common with the potential
participants, such as being a mother. While
being of the same race/ethnicity helps, being
able to relate to particular minority or cultural
experiences is more important (Rhodes et al.,
2018). The participants from the project in
which the lessons were learned were black
mothers, even though the focus of the study
was on mothers from economically under-
resourced backgrounds. The interviews were
conducted by an interviewer of the same
gender, but not the same race, social class, or
family structure. The interviewer did not
have any prior direct relationships with the
clinic, nor established rapport with parents
being interviewed. Further, the mismatch in
race and lived experience could have also
contributed to poor rapport, creating barriers
to recruitment.
Being attuned to minority or cultural
experiences may sometimes mean depending
on novice researchers who have valuable,
relevant lived experiences, but who are often
underrepresented in research programs in
higher education due to systemic inequities
(Dupree & Boykin, 2021). Although some
racially minoritized undergraduate students
may not have had the same access or
2
Health Behavior Research, Vol. 5, No. 3 [2022], Art. 18
https://newprairiepress.org/hbr/vol5/iss3/18
DOI: 10.4148/2572-1836.1153

exposure to research training programs as
their majority counterparts (Capri et al.,
2017), they are still valuable to research
teams. Their lived experiences surpass what
can be learned from a methods course, a
workshop, or a training program. Training
underrepresented undergraduate students to
recruit and collect data is feasible (Hodgman
et al., 2022), and the diversity that
underrepresented undergraduate students
bring to research teams can make research
teams stronger. Engaging scholars in the
research process can provide a unique
perspective that experienced researchers may
overlook (Hernandez et al., 2019).
Diversifying communication ap-
proaches. During the recruitment phase of
the study from which these lessons were
learned, only a phone number was collected
during the screening process. This could have
limited engagement as well. Research studies
that have collected email addresses in
addition to phone numbers have been
successful in enrolling participants
(Hodgman et al., 2022). Requesting a
preferred method of being contacted at the
point of recruitment could have also provide
more agency for potential participants to
share which contact method works best for
them to enhance the likelihood of
engagement.
Further, phone calls to schedule the in-
home interviews had a high non-response
rate (no answer, no option for voicemail).
After at least three follow-up phone calls,
follow-up calls were discontinued. This also
limited participation significantly. Hodgman
and colleagues (2022) recruited adults in an
under-resourced community and found
phones to be disconnected within a week’s
time from when participants were recruited.
Not recognizing the number from the
research team’s call, not wanting to answer
an unknown number, or work schedule
conflicts could have all been barriers to
answering phone calls from the research
team. For researchers who need to use phone
calls to recruit, screen, or enroll participants,
communicating what kind of number would
display on a participant’s phone could be
important (e.g., a Google Voice number,
sharing the specific area code). Further, when
research teams have been unable to speak
directly to the participant, text messages have
also been found successful in communicating
the required information (Eigege et al.,
2022). Relatedly, the senior author on this
manuscript has previously partnered with a
community organization that had the ability
to send mass communication in the form of
voice mails and text messages to inform
clients of a study. This has been effective in
increasing the pool of individuals that are
eligible for the study. At the same time, mass
communication increases the pool of
ineligible individuals, requiring time from
the research team to exclude individuals that
do not meet the study criteria.
In addition, health behavior research has
shown promise with using social media to
promote both recruitment and sustained
participant engagement (Rhodes et al., 2018).
A study by Mitchell and colleagues (2014)
showed that a sample of largely black single
mothers were interested in receiving health
behavior information via social media.
Another study successfully used Facebook
group messaging and mobile technology (text
“e-blasts”) to recruit black mothers to a study
on breastfeeding (Dauphin et al., 2020).
Furthermore, in 2020, 69% of individuals
making less than $30,000 per year used social
media regularly and 74% of black adults used
Facebook, Instagram, or some other form of
social media (Pew Research Center, 2019).
Meeting potential participants through
mechanisms that they are most likely to
engage with is important (Coker et al., 2009;
Kumanyika et al., 2007), and social media
may be an underutilized communication
approach to recruiting hard-to-reach
populations.
3
Kirk et al.: LESSONS LEARNED FOR IMPROVING HEALTH BEHAVIOR RESEARCH
Published by New Prairie Press, 2022

Study Design
Collaborating with multiple community
partners to meet the sample requirements.
The sample from the project in which this
Current Issue is drawn upon came from an
emergency room at a large medical center.
The fast pace of an emergency room, and the
associated medical concerns that parents
have when they arrive with their children, did
not allow for trust and rapport building. The
sole focus of an emergency room as the
location for sampling could have led to
prospective participants being missed.
Patients in clinics or pediatric offices could
have had more interests in the nature of the
original proposed study. Relatedly, drawing a
sample from a number of clinics or pediatric
offices, rather than one location, does require
greater project management but could have
assisted with increasing the sample size.
Utilizing a CAB to its fullest. The
research team in this study included CAB
members who participated in developing and
administering interview questions. However,
the study team did not engage the CAB’s
expertise in other aspects of the study. For
example, the CAB could have advised on
community events for recruitment purposes
(health fairs, church services), which could
have generated a greater sample size
(Kumanyika et al., 2007). Community-based
participatory research (CBPR) is the most
recognized form of community-engaged
research and has been found to address
stereotypes and harmful practices of
research, as well as promoting community
empowerment (Coker et al., 2009). Given
that the original goal of the study was to
examine mothers’ perceptions of how
community and family factors influence the
physical activity and healthy eating behaviors
of their children, utilizing the full scope of
CBPR to include community partnerships
and community involvement will be
considered for future studies.
Importance of interviewing partici-
pants in a familiar setting. Interviewing
participants from under-resourced, urban
communities in locations that they frequently
access and/or locations that they find comfort
in is vital. Many times, researchers default to
their own university setting. While this is
convenient for researchers and research
assistants, it presents participant burden in
the form of unmet childcare needs,
conflicting schedules with work, trans-
portation challenges, and expensive and/or
inconvenient parking (Eigege et al., 2022).
Participants may also experience discomfort
from engaging in an unfamiliar location
(Eigege et al., 2022; Hodgman et al., 2022).
In the study upon which these
recommendations are based, in-home
interviews were conducted to provide
convenience to the families. Completion of
the interviews within the home may have
reduced logistical and transportation barriers,
as well as allowed for the parent to participate
even though they had young children at
home. Other researchers have shown
improved fidelity and participant satisfaction
when conducting home interviews with
parents of young children (O’Kane et al.,
2019). Aside from participants’ homes,
community centers that participants
frequently access have also demonstrated
data collection feasibility (Hodgman et al.,
2022). Therefore, designing studies with
consideration of the unique needs of potential
participants who reside in under-resource
communities is important (Kumanyika et al.,
2007).
Implications for Health Behavior
Research and Publication Mentorship
In this Current Issue, we provided a brief
overview of lessons learned regarding
conducting community-engaged, health
behavior research in underserved
communities and with hard-to-reach
4
Health Behavior Research, Vol. 5, No. 3 [2022], Art. 18
https://newprairiepress.org/hbr/vol5/iss3/18
DOI: 10.4148/2572-1836.1153

populations. The lessons learned provide a
starting point for discussion on improving
recruitment and enrollment procedures and
enhancing quality and rigor of the study
design as a starting guide for doctoral
students and early-stage investigators
preparing their first primary research study.
Implications from the lessons learned can
help early-stage investigators and their
mentors take active steps to increase
engagement in health behavior research in
order to give voice to histrorically
underrepresented research participants and to
address known disparities in health behaviors
among vulnerable populations.
Discussion Questions
1. What additional recruitment methods can
be used? How can partnerships with
elementary schools and universities (e.g.,
schools of medicine, social work, or nursing)
assist with recruitment?
2. The original design of this study was a
cross-sectional design; thus, challenges with
long-term planned engagement and retention
procedures were not discussed above. Based
on the described lessons learned, what
retention and engagement procedures could
be considered when conducting research in
under-resourced communities?
Acknowledgments
This manuscript is a product of the American
Psychological Association’s Leadership and
Education Advancement Program (LEAP)
for Diverse Scholars [Dr. Kirk (scholar) and
Dr. Hernandez (mentor)]. Dr. Schuler was a
former mentee of Dr. Hernandez through the
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s New
Connection Program. Funding for data
collection of the original study from which
this paper was conceptualized was provided
by the University of Maryland School of
Social Work PhD Program to Dr. Brittany R.
Schuler. The manuscript was prepared with
support from the National Institute on
Minority Health and Health Disparities of the
National Institutes of Health under Award
Number K01MD015326 to Dr. Brittany R.
Schuler. The content is solely the
responsibility of the authors and does not
necessarily represent the official views of the
National Institutes of Health. Manuscript
preparation was supported by the Foundation
for Food and Agriculture Research via
Feeding America and the Research and
Extension Experiential Learning for
Undergraduate (REEU) Program of the
National Institute of Food and Agriculture,
USDA, Grant #2022-68018-36607 to Dr.
Daphne C. Hernandez. The authors do not
have conflicts of interest to disclose, financial
or otherwise.
References
Ahmed, S. M., & Palermo, A. -G. S. (2010).
Community engagement in research:
Frameworks for education and peer
review. American Journal of Public
Health, 100(8), 1380-1387.
https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2009.1781
37
Balazs, C. L., & Morello-Frosch, R. (2013).
The three Rs: How community-based
participatory research strengthens the
rigor, relevance, and reach of science.
Environmental Justice, 6(1), 9-16.
https://doi.org/10.1089/env.2012.0017
Carpi, A., Ronan, D. M., Falconer, H. M., &
Lents, N. H. (2017). Cultivating minority
scientists: Undergraduate research in-
creases self‐efficacy and career ambitions
for underrepresented students in
STEM. Journal of Research in Science
Teaching, 54(2), 169-194.
https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.21341
5
Kirk et al.: LESSONS LEARNED FOR IMPROVING HEALTH BEHAVIOR RESEARCH
Published by New Prairie Press, 2022

Coker, A. D., Huang, H.-H., & Kashubeck-
West, S. (2009). Research with African
Americans: Lessons learned about
recruiting African American women.
Journal of Multicultural Counseling and
Development, 37(3), 153-165.
https://doi.org/10.1002/J.2161-
1912.2009.TB00099.X
Dauphin, C., Clark, N., Cadzow, R., Saad-
Harfouche, F., Rodriguez, E., Glaser, K.,
Kiviniemi, M., Keller, M., & Erwin, D.
(2020). #BlackBreastsMatter: Process
evaluation of recruitment and engagement
of pregnant African American women for
a social media intervention study to
increase breastfeeding. Journal of
Medical Internet Research, 22(8), Article
e16239. https://doi.org/10.2196/16239
Dupree, C. H., & Boykin, C. M. (2021).
Racial inequality in academia: Systemic
origins, modern challenges, and policy
recommendations. Policy Insights from
the Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 8(1),
11-18.
https://doi.org/10.1177/23727322209841
83
Eigege, C. Y., Daundasekara, S. S., Gomez,
M. L., Walton, Q. L., & Hernandez, D. C.
(2022). Conducting research six feet apart:
The feasibility of transitioning qualitative
research to meet the emerging research
needs during a pandemic. International
Journal of Qualitative Methods. Advance
online publication.
https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069211069
442
Fisher, M., Brewer, S. E., Westfall, J. M.,
Simpson, M., Zittleman, L., O’Leary, S.
T., Fernald, D. H., Nederveld, A., &
Nease, D. E. (2019). Strategies for
developing and sustaining patient and
community advisory groups: Lessons
from the State Networks of Colorado
Ambulatory Practices and Partners
(SNOCAP) consortium of practice-based
research networks. Journal of the
American Board Family Medicine, 32(5),
663-673.
https://doi.org/10.3122/jabfm.2019.05.19
0038
Green, L., Daniel, M., & Novick, L. (2001).
Partnerships and coalitions for
community-based research. Public Health
Reports, 116(1_suppl), 20-31.
https://doi.org/10.1093/phr/116.S1.20
Hernandez, D. C., Reitzel, L. R., & Leal, I.
M. (2019). Advancing health behavior
research and scholarship through
mentorship of first generation, under-
represented undergraduate students.
Health Behavior Research, 2(4).
https://doi.org/10.4148/2572-1836.1054
Hodgman, C. F., LaVoy, E. C., Johnston, C.
A., Obasi, E. M., Murillo, R., Yan, S.,
O’Connor, D. P., McNeill, L. H., Reitzel,
L. R., & Hernandez, D. C. (2022).
Measuring pro- and anti-inflammatory
biomarkers among low-income Hispanic
adults: A feasibility and pilot assessment.
Health Behavior Research, 5(3).
https://doi.org/10.4148/2572-1836.1143
Kamdar, N., & Hernandez, D. C. (2022).
Photo-elicitation: Reflections on a method
to study food insecurity among low-
income, post-9/11 veterans. Public Health
Nursing, 39(1), 336-343.
https://doi.org/10.1111/phn.12989
Kumanyika, S., Whitt-Glover, M. C., Gary,
T. L., Prewitt, T. E., Odoms-Young, A.
M., Banks-Wallace, J., Beech, B. M.,
Hughes-Halbert, C., Karanja, N.,
Lancaster, K. J., & Samuel-Hodge, C. D.
(2007). Expanding the obesity research
paradigm to reach African American
6
Health Behavior Research, Vol. 5, No. 3 [2022], Art. 18
https://newprairiepress.org/hbr/vol5/iss3/18
DOI: 10.4148/2572-1836.1153

communities. Preventing Chronic
Disease, 4(4), Article A112.
Mendoza-Vasconez, A. S., Linke, S., Muñoz,
M., Pekmezi, D., Ainsworth, C., Cano,
M., Williams, V., Marcus, B. H., &
Larsen, B. A. (2016) Promoting physical
activity among underserved populations.
Current Sports Medicine Reports, 15(4),
290-297.
https://doi.org/10.1249/JSR.0000000000
000276
Mitchell, S. J., Godoy, L., Shabazz, K., &
Horn, I. B. (2014). Internet and mobile
technology use among urban African
American parents: Survey study of a
clinical population. Journal of Medical
Internet Research, 16(1), Article e2673.
https://doi.org/10.2196/jmir.2673
O’Kane, C., Irwin, J. D., Morrow, D., Tang,
L., Wong, S., Buchholz, A. C., Ma, D. W.
L., & Haines, J. (2019). Motivational
interviewing with families in the home
environment. Patient Education and
Counseling, 102(11), 2073-2080.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pec.2019.06.002
Paskett, E. D., Reeves, K. W., McLaughlin,
J. M., Katz, M. L., McAlearney, A. S.,
Ruffin, M. T., Hughes-Halbert, C.,
Merete, C., Davis, F., Gehlert, S. (2008).
Recruitment of minority and underserved
populations in the United States: The
centers for population health and health
disparities experience. Contemporary
Clinical Trials, 29(6), 847-861.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cct.2008.07.006
Pew Research Center. (2019). Social media
fact sheet. Retrieved March 6, 2022, from
https://www.pewinternet.org/fact-
sheet/social-media/
Rhodes, S. D., Alonzo, J., Mann-Jackson, L.,
Tanner, A. E., Vissman, A. T., Martinez,
O., Rodriguez-Celedon, R., Garcia, J. M.,
Arellano Hall, J. E., Song, E. Y., Eng, E.,
& Reboussin, B. A. (2018). Selling the
product: Strategies to increase recruitment
and retention of Spanish-speaking Latinos
in biomedical research. Journal of
Clinical and Translational Science, 2(3),
147-155.
https://doi.org/10.1017/cts.2018.314
Saha, S., Beach, M. C., & Cooper, L. A.
(2008). Patient centeredness, cultural
competence, and healthcare quality.
Journal of the National Medical
Association, 100(11), 1275-1285.
https://doi.org/10.1016/s0027-
9684(15)31505-4
7
Kirk et al.: LESSONS LEARNED FOR IMPROVING HEALTH BEHAVIOR RESEARCH
Published by New Prairie Press, 2022