Willingness of individuals with eating disorders to participate in health research.

Abstract

This study examines the association between eating disorders (EDs) and willingness to participate in health research studies among community members. Data were collected from Health Street, a University of Florida community engagement initiative which aims to reduce disparities in healthcare and health research by direct engagement of community members. Among 8,226 community members, 3.9% (n = 324) reported a lifetime ED. For all six types of health research studies queried, individuals with a lifetime ED reported a higher willingness to participate in health research compared to individuals without a history. After adjusting for selected covariates, individuals with ED were significantly more likely than individuals without ED to say they would be willing to volunteer for research studies that: ask questions about health (OR: 7.601, 95% CI: [1.874, 30.839]); require an overnight stay in a hospital (OR: 2.041, 95% CI: [1.442, 2.889]); and provide no remuneration (OR: 1.415, 95% CI: [1.022, 1.958]). Furthermore, when compared to individuals with anxiety or depression, individuals with ED reported increased interest in research participation and increased willingness to participate in most types of research studies assessed. After stratifying by gender and race, we observed few differences in willingness to participate in research among individuals with ED. These findings contribute to our current understanding of participant recruitment and enrollment in ED health research. Underrepresented populations who often do not seek treatment for EDs endorsed a high willingness to participate. Future studies will likely benefit from including community members in ED research.