Researcher Perceptions of a Self-Service Online Portal to Facilitate Volunteer Recruitment into Clinical Trials

Abstract

Background Recruitment of volunteers is a major challenge for clinical trials. There has been increasing development and use of Internet-based portals in recruitment for clinical research. There has been little research on researcher use and perceptions of these portals. Objectives This study evaluated researcher perceptions of use of Rally, an Internet-based portal for clinical trial volunteer recruitment. Methods A cross-sectional survey was developed and implemented to understand researcher perceptions. From theoretical models of information technology use, the survey adopted items in four domains: ease of use, usefulness, facilitating conditions, and self-efficacy. The dependent variable was researchers' behavioral intention to use Rally. The survey captured characteristics of researchers such as gender, age, and role. It was implemented using the REDCap survey tool. An email invitation followed by three reminders was sent to researchers. A hierarchical regression model was applied to assess predictors of behavioral intention. Results The survey response rate was 35.6% (152 surveys received from 427 contacted researchers). In the hierarchical regression model, facilitating conditions and self-efficacy predicted behavioral intention (F (4,94) = 6.478; p <0.001). The model explained 21.6% of the variance in behavioral intention (R-square change = 21.3%, p <0.001). Conclusion Facilitating conditions and self-efficacy predicted researchers' behavioral intention to use Rally for volunteer recruitment into clinical trials. Future research should document best practices and strategies for enhancing researcher use of online portals for volunteer recruitment.