“From Birth to Death, From Beginning to End”: Participant Experience and the Meaning of Research Participation in a Longitudinal Birth Cohort Study
Research participants are vital for the success of a birth cohort study. Despite their scientific importance and large participant numbers, research on participant experience in birth cohort studies is scarce. This study explores participant experience, its different dimensions and meaning of the ex...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:7ad7616581104149a0b685126b0556f2 2023-05-15T17:42:41+02:00 “From Birth to Death, From Beginning to End”: Participant Experience and the Meaning of Research Participation in a Longitudinal Birth Cohort Study Anna Reetta Rönkä 2022-05-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440221099297 https://doaj.org/article/7ad7616581104149a0b685126b0556f2 EN eng SAGE Publishing https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440221099297 https://doaj.org/toc/2158-2440 2158-2440 doi:10.1177/21582440221099297 https://doaj.org/article/7ad7616581104149a0b685126b0556f2 SAGE Open, Vol 12 (2022) History of scholarship and learning. The humanities AZ20-999 Social Sciences H article 2022 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440221099297 2022-12-30T21:49:03Z Research participants are vital for the success of a birth cohort study. Despite their scientific importance and large participant numbers, research on participant experience in birth cohort studies is scarce. This study explores participant experience, its different dimensions and meaning of the experience for the participants’ lives. The data comes from the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966. In total, 49 semi-structured interviews were conducted with participants having full participation records and then subjected to qualitative content and thematic analysis. According to the findings, the participant experience is multidimensional, consisting of four dimensions; personal, relational, societal, and scientific. The experience evoked both positive and negative feelings and a sense of belongingness. Motivations to continue, perceived benefits of the study, consequences of participation, and the theme of trust were grouped under the four dimensions. The meaning of the study participation, and the level of personal investment and involvement in the study varied a lot among active study participants, forming a continuum from a very strong to a weak. The findings of this study contribute to the theoretical conceptualization of the participant experience. They help to better understand the participant’s perspective, and the different aspects that participating in a longitudinal research project may entail as a subjective and a relational experience. The results may contribute to research design and aid in enhancing participant satisfaction. That is important, as conducting high-quality research depends on motivated and committed research participants. Article in Journal/Newspaper Northern Finland Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles SAGE Open 12 2 215824402210992 |
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Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
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language |
English |
topic |
History of scholarship and learning. The humanities AZ20-999 Social Sciences H |
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History of scholarship and learning. The humanities AZ20-999 Social Sciences H Anna Reetta Rönkä “From Birth to Death, From Beginning to End”: Participant Experience and the Meaning of Research Participation in a Longitudinal Birth Cohort Study |
topic_facet |
History of scholarship and learning. The humanities AZ20-999 Social Sciences H |
description |
Research participants are vital for the success of a birth cohort study. Despite their scientific importance and large participant numbers, research on participant experience in birth cohort studies is scarce. This study explores participant experience, its different dimensions and meaning of the experience for the participants’ lives. The data comes from the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1966. In total, 49 semi-structured interviews were conducted with participants having full participation records and then subjected to qualitative content and thematic analysis. According to the findings, the participant experience is multidimensional, consisting of four dimensions; personal, relational, societal, and scientific. The experience evoked both positive and negative feelings and a sense of belongingness. Motivations to continue, perceived benefits of the study, consequences of participation, and the theme of trust were grouped under the four dimensions. The meaning of the study participation, and the level of personal investment and involvement in the study varied a lot among active study participants, forming a continuum from a very strong to a weak. The findings of this study contribute to the theoretical conceptualization of the participant experience. They help to better understand the participant’s perspective, and the different aspects that participating in a longitudinal research project may entail as a subjective and a relational experience. The results may contribute to research design and aid in enhancing participant satisfaction. That is important, as conducting high-quality research depends on motivated and committed research participants. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Anna Reetta Rönkä |
author_facet |
Anna Reetta Rönkä |
author_sort |
Anna Reetta Rönkä |
title |
“From Birth to Death, From Beginning to End”: Participant Experience and the Meaning of Research Participation in a Longitudinal Birth Cohort Study |
title_short |
“From Birth to Death, From Beginning to End”: Participant Experience and the Meaning of Research Participation in a Longitudinal Birth Cohort Study |
title_full |
“From Birth to Death, From Beginning to End”: Participant Experience and the Meaning of Research Participation in a Longitudinal Birth Cohort Study |
title_fullStr |
“From Birth to Death, From Beginning to End”: Participant Experience and the Meaning of Research Participation in a Longitudinal Birth Cohort Study |
title_full_unstemmed |
“From Birth to Death, From Beginning to End”: Participant Experience and the Meaning of Research Participation in a Longitudinal Birth Cohort Study |
title_sort |
“from birth to death, from beginning to end”: participant experience and the meaning of research participation in a longitudinal birth cohort study |
publisher |
SAGE Publishing |
publishDate |
2022 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440221099297 https://doaj.org/article/7ad7616581104149a0b685126b0556f2 |
genre |
Northern Finland |
genre_facet |
Northern Finland |
op_source |
SAGE Open, Vol 12 (2022) |
op_relation |
https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440221099297 https://doaj.org/toc/2158-2440 2158-2440 doi:10.1177/21582440221099297 https://doaj.org/article/7ad7616581104149a0b685126b0556f2 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440221099297 |
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SAGE Open |
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12 |
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2 |
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215824402210992 |
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1766144594499600384 |