Maras Shelly A, Carthron Dana, Irwin Ashley, Ammerman Alice S, Shaikh Saame Raza, Mayer-Davis Elizabeth J
Department of Social Medicine, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States; Department of Medicine, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States.
School of Nursing, College of Health and Human Sciences, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, Greensboro, NC, United States.
Am J Clin Nutr. 2025 Jun;121(6):1281-1285. doi: 10.1016/j.ajcnut.2025.03.013. Epub 2025 Mar 19.
There is a need to support underrepresented groups (URGs) of investigators, especially early-stage investigators, in the fields of nutrition and obesity in which substantial health inequities exist among URGs. There is also a critical need to promote diverse collaborations among researchers in the field to increase heterogeneity and scientific rigor. Collaborations between Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and Predominantly White Institutions (PWIs) provide opportunities for career development among investigators from URGs in biomedical research; however, little is known about the barriers and facilitators to successful collaborations.
This study aims to understand the experiences of URG researchers involved in collaborations between HBCUs and PWIs to identify barriers and facilitators of success.
We conducted a virtual focus group (n = 12) over Zoom, which comprised administrative staff and faculty members from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a research-intensive PWI, and North Carolina Central University, a regionally adjacent HBCU. A professional facilitator led participants through a discussion where they were asked about their experiences in past collaborations between HBCUs and PWIs. Using inductive coding, our team developed a codebook from the focus group transcript, and we analyzed the data using a quasi-grounded theory approach.
Analysis of the focus group revealed 3 themes: 1) inequity of the collaborative process, 2) misalignment of capacity and expectations, and 3) stereotypes held by researchers at PWIs. These themes highlight barriers that have prevented mutually beneficial collaborations from forming among the focus group participants.
To promote mutually beneficial research collaborations between PWIs and HBCUs and, ultimately, to promote diversity among investigators in nutrition and obesity research, awareness must be drawn to the barriers to success in these relationships. It is imperative that institutions have conversations surrounding resources, research capacity, and expectations upon entering such research collaborations.
在营养与肥胖领域，需要支持代表性不足的研究人员群体（URGs），尤其是早期研究人员，因为这些群体中存在严重的健康不平等现象。此外，迫切需要促进该领域研究人员之间的多样化合作，以增加异质性并提高科学严谨性。历史上的黑人学院和大学（HBCUs）与主要为白人的机构（PWIs）之间的合作，为URGs的研究人员在生物医学研究中提供了职业发展机会；然而，对于成功合作的障碍和促进因素知之甚少。
本研究旨在了解参与HBCUs与PWIs合作的URG研究人员的经历，以确定成功的障碍和促进因素。
我们通过Zoom进行了一次虚拟焦点小组讨论（n = 12），参与者包括来自研究密集型PWI北卡罗来纳大学教堂山分校以及与之相邻的地区性HBCU北卡罗来纳中央大学的行政人员和教职员工。一名专业主持人引导参与者进行讨论，询问他们过去在HBCUs与PWIs合作中的经历。我们的团队使用归纳编码从焦点小组记录中制定了一个编码手册，并采用准扎根理论方法分析数据。
对焦点小组的分析揭示了3个主题：1）合作过程的不平等，2）能力与期望的不一致，3）PWIs研究人员持有的刻板印象。这些主题突出了阻碍焦点小组参与者之间形成互利合作的障碍。
为了促进PWIs与HBCUs之间的互利研究合作，并最终促进营养与肥胖研究中研究人员的多样性，必须认识到这些合作关系中成功的障碍。各机构在开展此类研究合作时，围绕资源、研究能力和期望进行沟通至关重要。
