Multilingual research assistants activate foreign-born persons to respond a survey in Finland

Abstract Background The decline in response rate is a major universal concern in population studies. This study demonstrates multilingual research assistants’ (n = 11) perceptions of the factors that influenced research participation in the National survey on health, well-being, and service use among the foreign-born population (MoniSuomi). Participation in the survey was possible via a questionnaire or a short interview by phone. Methods The interviewees were selected with purposeful sampling. Six semi-structured interviews with the research assistants were conducted in March 2023. The data were thematically analysed. Results Preliminary results can be arranged into three categories. The factors related to the 1) research assistant 2) responder and 3) research institute. The most influencing elements seemed to be the research assistant's ability to speak the participant's mother tongue, the participant's experience of inclusiveness, and their perception of the research institution. The response rate for those who were reached out by the multilingual research assistants was substantially higher (61.6%) compared to those whose phone number was not available (40.1%). The interviewees emphasized the importance of being involved additionally in the planning and reporting phases of a survey. Conclusions The findings of the study suggest that multilingual research assistants play an important role in activating foreign-born population to respond in a survey. However, participants’ experiences and the research institution's image are also to be considered. Key messages • Utilizing the knowledge of the target population is essential to the success of a survey. • Multilingual research assistants can represent the voice of foreign-born population during the conduction of a survey.