Cross-Language Qualitative Child Health Research: A Systematic Review.

Abstract

An increasing number of US children have parents who prefer languages other than English (LOEs). However, many LOE families are excluded from participation in qualitative research because of English proficiency requirements. Guidance to promote inclusion of LOE populations in qualitative research is limited. To synthesize published child health cross-language qualitative research and examine trends in how studies are conducted when a language barrier exists between researchers and participants. PubMed, CINAHL, and Sociological Abstracts. US-based cross-language research studies published between January 2010 and July 2025 that included adult LOE caregivers and discussed child health topics. Two reviewers examined each manuscript to describe cross-language processes for handling qualitative data collected with LOE participants, including study design/preparation, data collection, and analysis. Fifty-two studies were included. Most studies included only Spanish-speaking participants. Studies covered a wide range of health issues and populations. Studies used varying procedures to obtain information from LOE caregivers. Most studies conducted qualitative analysis in English after translating interviews from the source language. Many relied on bilingual research study staff or community members. Few described how findings were disseminated back to the community of interest. Cross-language qualitative child health research has increased in recent years; best practices for handling language data in LOEs might be emerging. This review identified variability in methods in published qualitative cross-language child health research. We share recommendations to promote inclusive practices in cross-language qualitative research to improve the generalizability and quality of child health research in the United States.