An Emotion Regulation Intervention for Early Adolescent Risk Prevention

Summary

This study will take a group-based intervention for adolescents that reduced sexual risk behavior and create a computer-based version, which is a format that adolescents like and that is more cost-effective. The intervention focuses on teaching adolescents skills for managing their emotions when they are making decisions that could put them at risk (like whether to have sex or drink alcohol). The investigators are hoping to learn whether a computer version of the program will be useful in helping adolescents learn about emotional competence and reducing risky behaviors. The investigators will make a version of the intervention as games on tablet computers in a partnership with a technology company, Klein Buendel. The research team will begin by getting advice from adolescents and experts (in separate groups) about how to convey the ideas from the group program into computer games. Klein Buendel will then create the games. Then, about 10 adolescents will be asked to try out the program and give us feedback about things to change. Klein Buendel will make those changes. Then the investigators will ask about 100 adolescents to volunteer to be randomly placed in one of two groups. One group will do the computer program right away; the other will wait for three months. Both groups will be asked to answer questions and do computer tasks when the team meets them, one month later, and three months later. The investigators will compare the groups to see if the group that received the computer intervention reports being more emotionally competent than the group that has not yet done the computer intervention. The research team will also ask them about their risk behaviors. If this is useful, it may be a good way to enhance health education taught in schools.

Conditions

• Risk Behavior
• Risk Reduction
• Emotion Regulation

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Tablet TRAC Emotion Regulation Intervention

The intervention focuses on developmentally appropriate strategies for emotion regulation during difficult situations, particularly those related to risk, using 3 primary groups of strategies identified during qualitative work in Project TRAC (R34 MH078750): 1) getting away (physically or cognitively) from triggers for strong emotions, 2) releasing emotional energy in healthy ways (physically or verbally) or 3) changing cognitions and appraisals about emotional triggers. Using strategies effective in TRAC, teens will engage in games to practice and apply strategies to risk scenarios, as well as personalize content learned.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)

  collaborator NIH

• Rhode Island Hospital

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Christopher Houck, PhD · Rhode Island Hospital

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

PREVENTION

Masking

NONE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

12 Years

Max Age

14 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2019-02-19

Primary Completion

2019-10-31

Completion

2019-10-31

Countries

• United States

Study Locations