The underrepresentation of developing countries in clinical trials limits the applicability of research findings to a significant portion of the global population. This study addresses this gap by conducting a retrospective analysis of published literature to identify patient-centric barriers to clinical trial participation in developing countries. A comprehensive search of PubMed, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library databases yielded four relevant studies, which were subjected to thematic analysis. The study identified 12 key emerging themes, with safety and efficacy concerns and trust issues being the most prevalent. The thematic analysis partially supported the hypothesis: While trust issues were found in all studies and lack of awareness in 50%, cultural and religious factors did not emerge as a distinct theme. Addressing these barriers is crucial to increasing clinical trial participation in developing countries, promoting more equitable and generalizable medical advancements.
","abstract_html":"<p>The underrepresentation of developing countries in clinical trials limits the applicability of research findings to a significant portion of the global population. This study addresses this gap by conducting a retrospective analysis of published literature to identify patient-centric barriers to clinical trial participation in developing countries. A comprehensive search of PubMed, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library databases yielded four relevant studies, which were subjected to thematic analysis. The study identified 12 key emerging themes, with safety and efficacy concerns and trust issues being the most prevalent. The thematic analysis partially supported the hypothesis: While trust issues were found in all studies and lack of awareness in 50%, cultural and religious factors did not emerge as a distinct theme. Addressing these barriers is crucial to increasing clinical trial participation in developing countries, promoting more equitable and generalizable medical advancements.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Kaur, Kirandeep"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Master of Science (MS)","degree_level":"Open Access Thesis","degree_discipline":"Health Sciences","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Michael Switzer, Ph.D.","Shannon Murray, MHS"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2025,"date_issued":"2025-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2025-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:17:53Z","subjects":["barriers","clinical trial participation","clinical trials","developing countries","research participation","underrepresentation","Medicine and Health Sciences"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://commons.emich.edu/theses/1302","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Michael Switzer, Ph.D.","Shannon Murray, MHS"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Kaur, Kirandeep"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2025-06-13T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Health Sciences"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Open Access Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Master of Science (MS)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["barriers","clinical trial participation","clinical trials","developing countries","research participation","underrepresentation","Medicine and Health Sciences"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://commons.emich.edu/theses/1302"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The underrepresentation of developing countries in clinical trials limits the applicability of research findings to a significant portion of the global population. This study addresses this gap by conducting a retrospective analysis of published literature to identify patient-centric barriers to clinical trial participation in developing countries. A comprehensive search of PubMed, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library databases yielded four relevant studies, which were subjected to thematic analysis. The study identified 12 key emerging themes, with safety and efficacy concerns and trust issues being the most prevalent. The thematic analysis partially supported the hypothesis: While trust issues were found in all studies and lack of awareness in 50%, cultural and religious factors did not emerge as a distinct theme. Addressing these barriers is crucial to increasing clinical trial participation in developing countries, promoting more equitable and generalizable medical advancements.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Patient-centric barriers to clinical trial participation in developing countries: A retrospective analysis"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Michael Switzer, Ph.D.","Shannon Murray, MHS"],"dc:creator":["Kaur, Kirandeep"],"dc:date.available":["2025-06-13T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["The underrepresentation of developing countries in clinical trials limits the applicability of research findings to a significant portion of the global population. This study addresses this gap by conducting a retrospective analysis of published literature to identify patient-centric barriers to clinical trial participation in developing countries. A comprehensive search of PubMed, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library databases yielded four relevant studies, which were subjected to thematic analysis. The study identified 12 key emerging themes, with safety and efficacy concerns and trust issues being the most prevalent. The thematic analysis partially supported the hypothesis: While trust issues were found in all studies and lack of awareness in 50%, cultural and religious factors did not emerge as a distinct theme. Addressing these barriers is crucial to increasing clinical trial participation in developing countries, promoting more equitable and generalizable medical advancements.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://commons.emich.edu/theses/1302"],"dc:subject":["barriers","clinical trial participation","clinical trials","developing countries","research participation","underrepresentation","Medicine and Health Sciences"],"dc:title":["Patient-centric barriers to clinical trial participation in developing countries: A retrospective analysis"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Health Sciences"],"thesis:degree_level":["Open Access Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Master of Science (MS)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:17:53Z"}