Hardly any dropout in long-term research: how engaging in dialogue with participants can strengthen your study
How do you keep participants engaged in your research from start to finish? And how do you connect your research with a wider audience? As a science communication adviser, Eva Slings works with researchers at Psychology on these and other questions. Colleagues share their experiences.
Since September 2025, Eva Slings has been working as a science communication adviser as part of the LDE traineeship. During this one-year appointment she works both at the Faculty Office and the Institute of Psychology to strengthen the connection between science and society. At Psychology, she supports a number of specific research projects, working with each study on a different, concrete communication question.
Research projects
So far, she has supported four projects from different sections, including a project within the research consortium Growing Up Together in Society (GUTS) and a PhD project by Marina Hansen on the factors that influence our eating behaviour. This spring, Eva will also join a study led by Bernet Elzinga on the influence of parental behaviour on depressive symptoms in children, and she will contribute ideas on how fundamental research can be opened up to society.
Knowledge sessions
The experiences and insights she gains from these projects will be made available this spring to all researchers across the institute through knowledge sessions and a practical guide with concrete recommendations. Below you can read more about the experiences from the projects over the past months and about how expertise in science communication can also play a role in medical-ethical questions.
Effective science communication: three tips
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Think in advance about at which stage of your research you want to involve society, what you hope to achieve, and how science communication can contribute to this. Do you want participants to help shape the design of your study? Would you like to share your results with your target audience in an accessible and creative way? Or do you want participants to stay informed and motivated throughout the entire research process?
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Based on your goals and strategy, develop a communication plan together with a science communication expert. Such a plan clarifies what is practically required to achieve your objectives and what kind of support – and from whom – may be helpful.
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Involve your target audience when developing the communication plan. Ultimately, they can best tell you what works for them and what does not. As far as possible, ensure that the voice of your audience is reflected in the choices you make (for example in recruitment strategies or communication materials). Put yourself in their position by discussing these matters with them.
Keeping participants engaged
How do you keep participants enthusiastic during long-term research? That was the communication question posed by researchers from the Leiden branch of the GUTS consortium. In collaboration with a Leiden student association, GUTS investigates how friendships and social relationships develop. Students complete questionnaires several times throughout the year. Although participation was high at the first measurement point – 450 students – this dropped to 300 at the second measurement. Eva was asked to work with the researchers, the association’s board and the student assistants to develop a plan to prevent further dropout. Whether this worked can be seen in the video below.
Interaction and dialogue
Another project Eva began working on in September is How Does the Netherlands Eat?, a PhD project by Marina Hanssen (SEO), supervised by Lotte van Dillen and Pam ten Broeke. ‘Eva helped us develop a plan to keep participants engaged in our longitudinal research project,’ says Hanssen. ‘Drawing on her broad knowledge of science communication and creative ideas, we developed a communication plan based on what the scientific literature tells us works. In this plan, we as researchers do not only send information, but also create space for interaction and dialogue with participants.’
Online coffee moment
The plan includes ideas such as an online coffee session where participants can ask questions about the study, as well as ways to offer behind-the-scenes insights through the newsletter. ‘Eva has also started setting up a webpage on the university website where participants can find practical information about the study and its procedures, and where they can get to know the researchers better through introductory videos and short facts.’
Providing feedback to parents
From March onwards, Eva will work on a study led by Bernet Elzinga that focuses on providing personalised feedback to parents of adolescents with depressive symptoms. Elzinga and her team investigate what parents of young people with depression can do to better support their children. For three to four weeks, parents monitor all interactions with their child: how much contact they have, and what kinds of conflicts occur. The research team translates these data into personalised feedback for parents to examine whether this can improve the effectiveness of a parenting course (Samen Sterk). Eva will explore how this information can be communicated constructively to parents and how they can be encouraged to reflect on these interaction patterns and their possible influence on their child’s mood.
Insights for everyone
Ultimately, the aim is for the knowledge and experience gained around science communication to become available to all researchers at the institute. Knowledge sessions will therefore be organised this spring in which researchers share their experiences with colleagues. By the end of the academic year, a practical guide will also be available that researchers can use when addressing questions related to science communication.