Perceptions of health research participation in rural and urban Pennsylvanians

Emerging evidence describes the experiences of individuals participating in health research, but insights into the barriers and motivations around research participation in rural communities are limited. We developed and administered a human-centered, evidence-informed survey to assess motivators and barriers to research participation among adults in Pennsylvania.

The online survey captured differences between individuals with and without prior research participation and living in rural and urban settings. We hypothesized that individuals with prior research experience would report different motivators and barriers than those who had never participated in research. We also anticipated that rural and urban respondents would differ in their reported motivators and barriers to participation.

Participants (n = 284, 75% female, 63% urban, 73% with prior research) completed the survey in spring of 2025. Overall top motivators to research participation included a willingness to "contribute to knowledge and medicine," to "help others," to "make a difference," "because the research was personally important," and "financial compensation." Top barriers included an "inconvenient research site," "limited transportation access," and "time/work constraints." A variety of motivators and barriers differed by prior research experience. There were no significant differences between the proportion of rural and urban prior research participants who endorsed any of the motivators or barriers. Rural, non-research participants drew greater motivation from "family influence" and "volunteering commitment."

The results of this work can inform the development of targeted strategies to improve research engagement, particularly among rural populations.