Adolescence is a significant developmental stage characterised by significant biopsychosocial changes that influence current and future health outcomes. Research examining puberty and adolescent development can often include biological samples, including blood and saliva, researcher assessments, including anthropometrics, and self-report, for example, of pubertal development. However, researchers report many challenges in recruiting adolescents for such research; these challenges include adolescent discomfort with measures that may be considered intimate or sensitive, parent concerns regarding privacy, ethical issues and cultural sensitivities. Despite these research challenges, limited research has explored the barriers to and facilitators of engagement in research on puberty by adolescents and parents. Addressing this gap is important for designing effective, ethical and inclusive research.
This project aims to identify the barriers and facilitators to recruiting and retaining adolescents in research on puberty. The objectives include conducting a scoping review of existing literature on adolescent recruitment in puberty research, exploring adolescent perspectives of puberty research through an existing Teen Advisory Panel, and gathering parent perspectives through semi-structured interviews.
A mixed-methods approach will be employed. A scoping review will synthesise evidence on adolescent participation in puberty research, following Arksey and O’Malley’s framework. Qualitative data from focus group sessions and semi-structured interviews will be analysed to explore adolescent and parent perspectives on participation in research on puberty, using Braun and Clark’s thematic analysis. These findings will cumulate into actionable insights for researchers designing puberty research with adolescents.
This project will provide new insights into the barriers and facilitators for adolescents in participation in puberty-related research. Two manuscript outputs and two conference presentations will disseminate the findings, contributing to improved recruitment strategies for adolescent research and biological sample collection. By incorporating adolescent and parent perspectives, this project aims to further the practical, ethical and inclusive research design by enhancing engagement and representation.