Research Attitudes and Interest among Elderly Latinxs: The Impact of a Collaborative Video and Community Peers

Background: Latinx elders are underrepresented in dementia research. In a previous study we assessed research attitudes in urban minority elders and found a significant minority expressed neutral to negative attitudes relating to trust, safety, and personal responsibility to help research. Objective: To assess the impact of a composite intervention on attitudes toward research and research participation among elderly Latinx. The intervention was a collaboratively produced research participation video shown during presentations with our elderly community advisory board (CAB) as co-presenters. Methods: The video was created by the ADRC and CAB. All senior center attendees were eligible to participate. Afterwards, the Research Attitudes Questionnaire (RAQ) and a brief questionnaire on the impact of the video were administered. Using Wilcoxon Rank Sum Tests, Chi Square, and OLS regressions, RAQ responses were compared to those from a historical cohort from similar centers. Results: 74 in the 'Historical Cohort 1' and 104 in 'Intervention Cohort 2' were included. RAQ total score was higher in Cohort 2 than Cohort 1 (28.5 versus 26.1, p < 0.05) after controlling for age, education, and country of origin. In response to the question 'Has the video influenced your willingness and interest to participate in research', 88.7%of the participants in Cohort 2 reported being 'more' or 'much more' interested in research. Conclusion: Tailoring community research recruitment programs to include relatable peers using novel recruitment techniques may have positive implications for improving enrollment of diverse elderly individuals in research.