The Recruitment to Dissemination Continuum in Community-Based Participatory Research
Progress in Community Health Partnerships Summer 2022
RHCP explored how recruitment and dissemination in community-based participatory research (CBPR) can work together to build trust and strengthen long-term partnerships. Through focus groups with Hispanic and Somali community members and academic partners, they found that trust, relationship-building, and shared decision-making were key to successful recruitment for a social network survey. Community partners led recruitment efforts using culturally tailored strategies, such as leveraging personal networks and adapting outreach to fit community norms. These efforts were especially important given the political climate and mistrust of institutions at the time.
The dissemination of survey results through a multilingual community event helped reinforce trust and encouraged future participation in research. Attendees felt ownership of the data and saw the findings as a call to action for improving community health. The event also expanded RHCP’s network by engaging new leaders and strengthening connections between diverse communities. This cycle—from recruitment to dissemination and back—demonstrated how CBPR can sustain engagement and build capacity over time. RHCP’s experience shows that when communities are involved in every step of the research process, it leads to more meaningful outcomes and greater willingness to participate in future studies.