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Do volunteer subjects bias clinical trials?
1Department of Psychiatry, University of Vermont, College of Medicine, Burlington 05405.
Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology
|October 1, 1989
Summary
Symptomatic volunteers for antidepressant research share many traits with clinic patients but exhibit greater sadness and discouragement. Their motivation for seeking help differs, impacting generalizability of findings.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry
- Clinical Psychology
- Behavioral Science
Background:
- Volunteer recruitment for antidepressant medication research is crucial.
- Understanding volunteer characteristics is key to generalizability of findings.
- Previous research shows symptomatic volunteers and clinic patients share some similarities.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate demographic and psychological differences between symptomatic volunteers and clinic patients.
- To assess factors influencing help-seeking behavior in both groups.
- To determine the impact of these differences on research generalizability.
Main Methods:
- Recruited 30 symptomatic volunteers via newspaper ads and 30 new clinic patients.
- Administered Beck Depression Inventory, Millon Behavioral Health Inventory, and a study-specific questionnaire.
- Compared groups on demographics, coping styles, psychosocial stress, and depression severity.
Main Results:
- No significant differences in demographics, coping, psychosocial stress, or overall depression severity.
- Volunteers reported higher levels of sadness, discouragement, and lower interest in others.
- Volunteers prioritized finding treatment; clinic patients cited referral as primary help-seeking factor.
Conclusions:
- Symptomatic volunteers for antidepressant drug research are largely similar to patients seeking treatment.
- Differences in emotional state and help-seeking motivations exist between volunteers and patients.
- Perception of treatment need may be influenced by specific depressive symptom severity.