Web-based Social Media Intervention to Increase Vaccine Acceptance: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Background Despite intervention efforts to date, the prevalence of risky drinking among adolescents and emerging adults remains high, increasing the risk for health consequences and the development of alcohol use disorders. Peer influences are particularly salient among this age group, including via social media. Thus, the development of efficacious early interventions for youth, delivered with a broad reach via trained peers on social media, could have an important role in addressing risky drinking and concomitant drug use. Objective This paper describes the protocol of a randomized controlled trial (RCT) testing the efficacy of a social media intervention among adolescents and emerging adults who meet the criteria for risky drinking (using the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test-Consumption [AUDIT-C]), delivered with and without financial incentives for participation, compared with an attention placebo control condition (ie, entertaining social media content), on alcohol consumption and consequences. Methods This RCT involved recruiting 955 youths (aged 16-24 years) via advertisements on Facebook and Instagram to self-administer a brief web-based screening survey. Those screening positive for past 3-month risky drinking (AUDIT-C positive: ages 16-17 years: ≥3 females and ≥4 males; and ages 18-24 years: ≥4 females and ≥5 males) were eligible for the RCT. After providing consent (a waiver of parental consent was obtained for minors), participants completed a web-based baseline survey and several verification procedures, including a selfie photo matched to Facebook profile photos. Participants were then randomized to join invitation-only secret Facebook groups, which were not searchable or viewable by parents, friends, or anyone not recruited by the study. The 3 conditions were social media intervention with incentives, social media intervention without incentives (SMI), and attention placebo control. Each condition lasted 8 weeks and consisted of bachelor’s-level and master’s-level therapist electronic coaches posting relevant content and responding to participants’ posts in a manner consistent with Motivational Interviewing. Participants in the control condition and SMI condition did not receive payments but were blind to condition assignment between these 2 conditions. Follow-ups are ongoing and occur at 3, 6, and 12 months poststart of the groups. Results We enrolled 955 participants over 10 waves of recruitment who screened positive for risky drinking into the RCT. Conclusions The findings of this study will provide the critical next step in delivering early alcohol interventions to the youth, capitalizing on social media platforms, which could have significant public health impact by altering alcohol use trajectories of adolescents and emerging adults engaged in risky drinking. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02809586; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02809586. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) DERR1-10.2196/16688

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Efficacy and causal mechanism of an online social media intervention to increase physical activity: Results of a randomized controlled trial

Preventive Medicine Reports ◽

10.1016/j.pmedr.2015.08.005 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 2 ◽

pp. 651-657 ◽

Cited By ~ 50

Author(s):

Jingwen Zhang ◽

Devon Brackbill ◽

Sijia Yang ◽

Damon Centola

Keyword(s):

Physical Activity ◽

Social Media ◽

Randomized Controlled Trial ◽

Controlled Trial ◽

Causal Mechanism ◽

Randomized Controlled ◽

Online Social Media ◽

Media Intervention

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Smokers’ Likelihood to Engage With Information and Misinformation on Twitter About the Relative Harms of e-Cigarette Use: Results From a Randomized Controlled Trial

JMIR Public Health and Surveillance ◽

10.2196/27183 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 7 (12) ◽

pp. e27183

Author(s):

Jessica Liu ◽

Caroline Wright ◽

Philippa Williams ◽

Olga Elizarova ◽

Jennifer Dahne ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Randomized Controlled Trial ◽

Regression Models ◽

Outcome Measure ◽

Controlled Trial ◽

Cigarette Use ◽

Web Based ◽

Randomized Controlled ◽

The Past ◽

Twitter Users

Background Information and misinformation on the internet about e-cigarette harms may increase smokers’ misperceptions of e-cigarettes. There is limited research on smokers’ engagement with information and misinformation about e-cigarettes on social media. Objective This study assessed smokers’ likelihood to engage with—defined as replying, retweeting, liking, and sharing—tweets that contain information and misinformation and uncertainty about the harms of e-cigarettes. Methods We conducted a web-based randomized controlled trial among 2400 UK and US adult smokers who did not vape in the past 30 days. Participants were randomly assigned to view four tweets in one of four conditions: (1) e-cigarettes are as harmful or more harmful than smoking, (2) e-cigarettes are completely harmless, (3) uncertainty about e-cigarette harms, or (4) control (physical activity). The outcome measure was participants’ likelihood of engaging with tweets, which comprised the sum of whether they would reply, retweet, like, and share each tweet. We fitted Poisson regression models to predict the likelihood of engagement with tweets among 974 Twitter users and 1287 non-Twitter social media users, adjusting for covariates and stratified by UK and US participants. Results Among Twitter users, participants were more likely to engage with tweets in condition 1 (e-cigarettes are as harmful or more harmful than smoking) than in condition 2 (e-cigarettes are completely harmless). Among other social media users, participants were more likely to likely to engage with tweets in condition 1 than in conditions 2 and 3 (e-cigarettes are completely harmless and uncertainty about e-cigarette harms). Conclusions Tweets stating information and misinformation that e-cigarettes were as harmful or more harmful than smoking regular cigarettes may receive higher engagement than tweets indicating e-cigarettes were completely harmless. Trial Registration International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number (ISRCTN) 16082420; https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN16082420

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Social Media Interventions for Risky Drinking Among Adolescents and Emerging Adults: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial (Preprint)

10.2196/preprints.16688 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Erin E Bonar ◽

Diane M Schneeberger ◽

Carrie Bourque ◽

Jose A Bauermeister ◽

Sean D Young ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Alcohol Use ◽

Emerging Adults ◽

Controlled Trial ◽

Alcohol Use Disorders ◽

Placebo Control ◽

Risky Drinking ◽

Web Based ◽

Randomized Controlled ◽

Media Intervention

BACKGROUND Despite intervention efforts to date, the prevalence of risky drinking among adolescents and emerging adults remains high, increasing the risk for health consequences and the development of alcohol use disorders. Peer influences are particularly salient among this age group, including via social media. Thus, the development of efficacious early interventions for youth, delivered with a broad reach via trained peers on social media, could have an important role in addressing risky drinking and concomitant drug use. OBJECTIVE This paper describes the protocol of a randomized controlled trial (RCT) testing the efficacy of a social media intervention among adolescents and emerging adults who meet the criteria for risky drinking (using the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test-Consumption [AUDIT-C]), delivered with and without financial incentives for participation, compared with an attention placebo control condition (ie, entertaining social media content), on alcohol consumption and consequences. METHODS This RCT involved recruiting 955 youths (aged 16-24 years) via advertisements on Facebook and Instagram to self-administer a brief web-based screening survey. Those screening positive for past 3-month risky drinking (AUDIT-C positive: ages 16-17 years: ≥3 females and ≥4 males; and ages 18-24 years: ≥4 females and ≥5 males) were eligible for the RCT. After providing consent (a waiver of parental consent was obtained for minors), participants completed a web-based baseline survey and several verification procedures, including a selfie photo matched to Facebook profile photos. Participants were then randomized to join invitation-only secret Facebook groups, which were not searchable or viewable by parents, friends, or anyone not recruited by the study. The 3 conditions were social media intervention with incentives, social media intervention without incentives (SMI), and attention placebo control. Each condition lasted 8 weeks and consisted of bachelor’s-level and master’s-level therapist electronic coaches posting relevant content and responding to participants’ posts in a manner consistent with Motivational Interviewing. Participants in the control condition and SMI condition did not receive payments but were blind to condition assignment between these 2 conditions. Follow-ups are ongoing and occur at 3, 6, and 12 months poststart of the groups. RESULTS We enrolled 955 participants over 10 waves of recruitment who screened positive for risky drinking into the RCT. CONCLUSIONS The findings of this study will provide the critical next step in delivering early alcohol interventions to the youth, capitalizing on social media platforms, which could have significant public health impact by altering alcohol use trajectories of adolescents and emerging adults engaged in risky drinking. CLINICALTRIAL ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02809586; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02809586. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT DERR1-10.2196/16688

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Smokers’ Likelihood to Engage With Information and Misinformation on Twitter About the Relative Harms of e-Cigarette Use: Results From a Randomized Controlled Trial (Preprint)

10.2196/preprints.27183 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Jessica Liu ◽

Caroline Wright ◽

Philippa Williams ◽

Olga Elizarova ◽

Jennifer Dahne ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Social Media ◽

Randomized Controlled Trial ◽

Regression Models ◽

Outcome Measure ◽

Controlled Trial ◽

Cigarette Use ◽

Web Based ◽

Randomized Controlled ◽

The Past ◽

Twitter Users

BACKGROUND Information and misinformation on the internet about e-cigarette harms may increase smokers’ misperceptions of e-cigarettes. There is limited research on smokers’ engagement with information and misinformation about e-cigarettes on social media. OBJECTIVE This study assessed smokers’ likelihood to engage with—defined as replying, retweeting, liking, and sharing—tweets that contain information and misinformation and uncertainty about the harms of e-cigarettes. METHODS We conducted a web-based randomized controlled trial among 2400 UK and US adult smokers who did not vape in the past 30 days. Participants were randomly assigned to view four tweets in one of four conditions: (1) e-cigarettes are as harmful or more harmful than smoking, (2) e-cigarettes are completely harmless, (3) uncertainty about e-cigarette harms, or (4) control (physical activity). The outcome measure was participants’ likelihood of engaging with tweets, which comprised the sum of whether they would reply, retweet, like, and share each tweet. We fitted Poisson regression models to predict the likelihood of engagement with tweets among 974 Twitter users and 1287 non-Twitter social media users, adjusting for covariates and stratified by UK and US participants. RESULTS Among Twitter users, participants were more likely to engage with tweets in condition 1 (e-cigarettes are as harmful or more harmful than smoking) than in condition 2 (e-cigarettes are completely harmless). Among other social media users, participants were more likely to likely to engage with tweets in condition 1 than in conditions 2 and 3 (e-cigarettes are completely harmless and uncertainty about e-cigarette harms). CONCLUSIONS Tweets stating information and misinformation that e-cigarettes were as harmful or more harmful than smoking regular cigarettes may receive higher engagement than tweets indicating e-cigarettes were completely harmless. CLINICALTRIAL International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number (ISRCTN) 16082420; https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN16082420

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Faculty Opinions recommendation of Evaluation of a web-based skills intervention for carers of people with anorexia nervosa: a randomized controlled trial.

Faculty Opinions – Post-Publication Peer Review of the Biomedical Literature ◽

10.3410/f.718013713.793479470 ◽

2013 ◽

Author(s):

Ivan Eisler ◽

Anna Konstantellou

Keyword(s):

Randomized Controlled Trial ◽

Anorexia Nervosa ◽

Controlled Trial ◽

Web Based ◽

Randomized Controlled

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The Use of Web-Based Support Groups versus Usual Quit-Smoking Care for Men and Women 21–59 Years Old: A Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial

SSRN Electronic Journal ◽

10.2139/ssrn.3477028 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Cornelia Pechmann ◽

Douglas Calder ◽

Connor Phillips ◽

Kevin Delucchi ◽

Judith J. Prochaska

Keyword(s):

Randomized Controlled Trial ◽

Support Groups ◽

Controlled Trial ◽

Web Based ◽

Men And Women ◽

Randomized Controlled ◽

Quit Smoking

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Effectiveness of a web-based medication adherence tool with patient centered communication: Results of a clustered randomized controlled trial (Preprint)

10.2196/preprints.16141 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Jan van Lieshout ◽

Joyca Lacroix ◽

Aart van Halteren ◽

Martina Teichert

Keyword(s):

Randomized Controlled Trial ◽

Medication Adherence ◽

Controlled Trial ◽

Intervention Group ◽

Control Group ◽

Community Pharmacies ◽

Web Based ◽

Randomized Controlled ◽

Tailored Interventions ◽

Increased Risk

BACKGROUND Growing numbers of people use medication for chronic conditions; non-adherence is common, leading to poor disease control. A newly developed web-based tool to identify an increased risk for non-adherence with related potential individual barriers might facilitate tailored interventions and improve adherence. OBJECTIVE To assess the effectiveness of the newly developed tool to improve medication adherence. METHODS A cluster randomized controlled trial assessed the effectiveness of this adherence tool in patients initiating cardiovascular or oral blood glucose lowering medication. Participants were included in community pharmacies. They completed an online questionnaire comprising an assessments of their risk for medication non-adherence and subsequently of barriers to adherence. In pharmacies belonging to the intervention group, individual barriers displayed in a graphical profile on a tablet were discussed by pharmacists and patients at high non-adherence risk in face to face meetings and shared with their general practitioners and practice nurses. Tailored interventions were initiated by the healthcare providers. Barriers of control patients were not presented or discussed and these patients received usual care. The primary outcome was the difference in medication adherence at 8 months follow-up between patients with an increased non-adherence risk from intervention and control group, calculated from dispensing data. RESULTS Data from 492 participants in 15 community pharmacies were available for analyses (intervention 253, 7 pharmacies; control 239, 8 pharmacies). The intervention had no effect on medication adherence (-0.01; 95%CI -0.59 – 0.57; P= .96), neither in the post hoc per protocol analysis (0.19; 95%CI -0.50 – 0.89; P=.58). CONCLUSIONS This study showed no effectiveness of a risk stratification and tailored intervention addressing personal barriers for medication adherence. Various potential explanations for lack of effect were identified. These explanations relate for instance to high medication adherence in the control group, study power and fidelity. Process evaluation should elicit possible improvements and inform the redesign of intervention and implementation. CLINICALTRIAL The Netherlands National Trial Register: NTR5186. Date: May 18, 2015 (http://www.trialregister.nl/trialreg/admin/rctview.asp?TC=5186)

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