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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2015 Aug 3.
Published in final edited form as: West J Nurs Res. 2011 Aug 5;35(1):76–97. doi: 10.1177/0193945911416829

Table 1.

Factors Contributing to Methodological Challenges in Research with Older Adult Subjects

Sampling Challenges Restrictive inclusion criteria (e.g., functional status, co-morbidities) may hinder recruitment
Difficulty locating homogenous sample populations
Involvement of members outside of research team for potential subjects in nursing home or hospital settings
Difficulty finding subjects from community settings
Challenges obtaining informed consent due to legal, ethical, or health-related issues
Potential mistrust of research activities among some potential subjects
Potential difficulty securing family support for participation
Increased attrition due to frailty, co-morbidities, poor understanding and compliance to study protocols
Data Measures or Collection Challenges Decreased functional status affecting hearing, vision, memory recall, and increased response time
Decreased familiarity with technology used for data collection
Increased attrition due to frailty, co-morbidities, poor understanding and compliance to study protocols