Digitally Prompted Parenting: A Text Message Parent-Based Alcohol Intervention for Incoming College Students

Loyola Marymount University

Status: Invitation-only

Conditions: Underage Drinking

Treatments: Behavioral: Digitally Prompted Parenting; Behavioral: Active Control

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT06861660

1R34AA031358-01A1 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Details and patient eligibility

About

This pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) will evaluate both the feasibility and efficacy of Digitally Prompted Parenting (DPP), a text-message based parent intervention (tm-PBI) designed to prevent and reduce alcohol use among first-year college students. In this study, parents of incoming first-year students will receive risk-reducing text messages during the first 10 weeks of the Fall semester, which they can forward to their students. The trial uses a longitudinal design to compare drinking outcomes between students whose parents receive the DPP messages and those whose parents receive an established alcohol PBI (the active control condition). The investigators hypothesize that students in the DPP group will report lower levels of alcohol use and fewer alcohol-related consequences after the intervention compared to those in the active control group.

Enrollment: 300 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 17 to 20 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Student is 17-20 years of age
• Student is an LMU incoming first-year college student
• Student has access to a cellular device capable of receiving text messages
• Student's parent or legal guardian has an email address on file at LMU
• Student's parent or legal guardian has a cellular device capable of receiving text messages
• Student's parent or legal guardian received an invitation from the research team to participate
• Student's parent or legal guardian signed up to access the assigned intervention
• Student's parent or legal guardian is a resident of the United States
• Informed consent (or assent, as applicable) is provided

Exclusion criteria

• Student is not 17-20 years of age
• Student is not an LMU incoming first-year college student
• Student does not have access to a cellular device capable of receiving text messages
• Student's parent or legal guardian does not have an email address on file at LMU
• Student's parent or legal guardian does not have a cellular device capable of receiving text messages
• Student's parent or legal guardian did not receive an invitation from the research team to participate
• Student's parent or legal guardian did not sign up to access the assigned intervention
• Student's parent or legal guardian is not a resident of the United States
• Informed consent (or assent, as applicable) is not provided

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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300 participants in 2 patient groups

Digitally Prompted Parenting

Experimental group

Description:

Parents of participating first-year college students in this intervention arm will receive a series of prewritten text messages during the first 10 weeks of college. Parents can personalize these messages before sending them directly to their student, who is the study participant, with the goal of reducing alcohol-related risks.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Digitally Prompted Parenting

Active Control

Active Comparator group

Description:

Parents of participating first-year college students in this arm of the study will receive access to the Parent Handbook during the summer before matriculation and three booster emails that summarize its key points after matriculation.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Active Control