Beyond Scientific Publication: Strategies for Disseminating Research Findings

To be most effective, dissemination strategies must be incorporated into the earliest planning stages of a research study. In fact, the most successful dissemination processes are typically designed prior to the start of a project. In creating a dissemination plan, researchers should consider several key questions:

• Goal: What are the goals and objectives of the dissemination effort? What impact do you hope to have?
• Audience: Who is affected most by this research? Who would be interested in learning about the study findings? Is this of interest to a broader community?
• Medium: What is the most effective way to reach each audience? What resources does each group typically access?
• Execution: When should each aspect of the dissemination plan occur (e.g. at which points during the study and afterwards)? Who will be responsible for dissemination activities?