Impact of Financial Incentives in Diverse Recruitment
Clinical Trial Knowledge Hub
CTRL Pilot
Impact of Financial Incentives
in Diverse Recruitment
Research Focus
Can financial incentives increase enrollment of diverse participants in a memory concerns registry?
Study Term
2022 – 2026
Status
Phase 1 complete
Pilot Description
Researchers sought to evaluate the impact of offering financial incentives on remote recruitment of individuals underrepresented in Alzheimer’s research into the Alzheimer’s Prevention Trials (APT) Webstudy, an online registry designed to accelerate enrollment in clinical trials. About 45,000 patients aged 50 and older from Contra Costa Regional Medical Center—an integrated county health system in California serving primarily Medicaid enrollees—were divided into three groups: one received an email or text invitation to enroll, one received the invitation plus a $25 gift card offer for enrolling, and one received the invitation plus an offer of entry into a $2,500 gift card prize drawing with a 1-in-100 odds of winning.
Participant Input
This pilot used direct patient outreach to study what motivates individuals—particularly those from underrepresented communities—to join research registries. By comparing different financial offers, the study examined how incentives influence willingness to enroll. In this way, participant perspectives and motivations informed the pilot’s design and its broader goal of improving representation in Alzheimer’s research.
Key Lessons
40% boost in enrollment
The $25 gift card significantly outperformed invitation-only recruitment and the prize incentive
Who responded best?
White, male and Medicaid-enrolled participants showed the strongest response to incentives
Cost consideration
Despite lower enrollment compared to the $25 gift card, the invitation-only approach remained the most cost-effective
Learn More
🔎 Published Research
“Financial Incentives to Increase Diversity of Older Participants in a Memory Concerns Registry.” JAMA Health Forum (2025).
📰 In the News
“How a Gift Card Could Help Speed Up Alzheimer’s Clinical Research”
📊 Upcoming Presentation
NIH Collaboratory Grand Rounds | Jan. 16, 2026
Lead Researchers
Chief Scientific Officer, Clinical Trial Recruitment Lab
Senior Scholar, USC Schaeffer Institute
Professor, USC Davis School of Gerontology
Scholar, USC Schaeffer Institute
Associate Professor, USC Alzheimer’s
Therapeutic Research Institute