Alcohol and Alcoholism Advance Access originally published online on March 21, 2006
Alcohol and Alcoholism 2006 41(3):349-352; doi:10.1093/alcalc/agl019
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RAPID COMMUNICATION
RECRUITMENT OF HEALTHY PARTICIPANTS FOR STUDIES ON RISKS FOR ALCOHOLISM: EFFECTIVENESS OF RANDOM DIGIT DIALLING
1 Donald W. Reynolds Department of Geriatric Medicine and 2 Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA, 3 Department of Psychology and 4 Bureau for Social Research Oklahoma State University, OK, USA and 5 Behavioral Sciences Labs, Veterans Affairs Medical Center, OK, USA
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed at: University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Donald W. Reynolds Department of Geriatric Medicine, VA Medical Center (151A), 921 NE 13th Street, Oklahoma City, OK 73104, USA. Tel.: +1 405 270 0501 (ext. 3131); Fax: +1 405 290 1839; E-mail: Kristen-sorocco{at}ouhsc.edu
(Received 1 September 2005; first review notified 12 November 2005; in revised form 14 February 2006; accepted 15 February 2006)
Aims: To compare the effectiveness of two strategies for recruiting healthy research volunteers. Methods: Demographic characteristics and recruitment costs of participants who completed a laboratory study examining risk factors for alcoholism recruited through random digit dialling (N = 11) and community advertisements (N = 102) were compared. Results: Advertisement yielded a more representative sample [76% Caucasian, less well educated (M = 15.2 years, SEM = 0.2; P < 0.05), more equally divided by family history of alcoholism (43% FH– and 57% FH+), and lower in SES (M = 42.8, SEM = 1.3; P < 0.05)] and was more cost effective ($72 vs $2272 per participant) than random digit dialling. Conclusions: Findings are relevant to alcohol researchers trying to determine the recruitment strategy that will yield the most representative sample at the lowest cost.