Feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a co-designed and co-2 created healthy lifestyle social media intervention program the 3 ‘Daily Health Coach’ for young women: a pilot randomised 4 controlled trial.

Last registered on December 02, 2024

Pre-Trial

General Information

Title

RCT ID

AEARCTR-0014872

Initial registration date

November 19, 2024

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published

December 02, 2024, 11:04 AM EST

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

Country

New Zealand

Region

Auckland

Primary Investigator

Name

Rajshri Roy

Affiliation

The University of Auckland

Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name

Jessica Malloy

PI Affiliation

University of Auckland

Contact Investigator

Additional Trial Information

Status

Completed

Start date

2023-10-01

End date

2024-10-01

Keywords

Behavior, Education, Gender

Additional Keywords

Social media intervention, Behavioural health, Diet, Health Promotion, Young women

JEL code(s)

Secondary IDs

Prior work

This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.

Abstract

Young women spend 50 minutes daily on social media (SM); thus, SM platforms are prom-20 ising for health interventions. This study tested the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a co-de-21 signed Instagram intervention targeting eating, physical activity, and social well-being behaviours 22 in women aged 18–24. The DHC was an assessor-blinded, two-arm pilot randomized controlled trial 23 with 50 participants over 12 weeks. Engagement was assessed via SM metrics; acceptability via post-24 program questionnaires; feasibility included retention, randomization, recruitment, and data col-25 lection. Secondary outcomes—dietary quality, physical activity, social influence, disordered eating 26 behaviours, body image, and digital health literacy—were assessed using validated surveys. Anal-27 yses included t-tests, chi-squared tests, and linear mixed models. Treatment effects were estimated 28 by testing mean score differences from baseline to 3 months for intention-to-treat populations. The 29 DHC scored 83.6% for program satisfaction. Over time, a significant decrease in body image was 30 observed (p = 0.013). A significant group-by-time interaction for digital health literacy (p = 0.002) 31 indicated increased ability to discern evidence-based nutrition information (p = 0.006). The waitlist 32 control group showed increased social influence compared to the intervention group (p = 0.034). No 33 other significant changes were observed. The DHC is a feasible and acceptable method for dissem-34 inating nutrition information. Larger studies are needed to determine efficacy.

External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation

Malloy, Jessica and Rajshri Roy. 2024. "Feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a co-designed and co-2 created healthy lifestyle social media intervention program the 3 ‘Daily Health Coach’ for young women: a pilot randomised 4 controlled trial.." AEA RCT Registry. December 02. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.14872-1.0

Sponsors & Partners

Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)

The intervention is the Daily Health Coach (DHC) program, a social media-based health promotion initiative targeting young women (aged 18-24 years) in New Zealand. It is delivered primarily through Instagram and aims to improve diet quality, physical activity, and overall well-being using daily posts, reels, and stories.

Intervention (Hidden)

The intervention leverages evidence-based guidelines, a participatory design approach, and behavior change theories such as the COM-B model and Self-Determination Theory. The program includes themed daily content addressing myths, education, social media pitfalls, recipes, and more. The pilot study assesses feasibility and program usage via engagement metrics and participant feedback.

Intervention Start Date

2023-10-02

Intervention End Date

2024-05-03

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)

Feasibility of research procedures: Recruitment, randomization, data collection, and retention rates.
Feasibility of intervention components: Program usage, satisfaction, and usability as assessed through surveys and social media metrics.

Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Key metrics include:

Recruitment and retention rates.
Engagement data (likes, shares, comments).
Participant-reported satisfaction and perceived usefulness of the program, evaluated on Likert scales.

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)

Behavioral outcomes: Changes in diet quality (e.g., fruit and vegetable intake), physical activity levels, and sedentary behavior.
Psychosocial outcomes: Measures of social influence, body image, and food relationships.

Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Outcomes are measured using validated tools, such as:

Short Dietary and Physical Activity Questionnaires.
Body Shape Questionnaire (BSQ).
Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire (TFEQ).

Experimental Design

The study is an assessor-blinded, two-arm, pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) comparing the immediate intervention group to a waitlist control group. Participants will engage with the DHC program for 12 weeks, with data collected pre-intervention, mid-intervention, and post-intervention.

Experimental Design Details

Participants are exposed to up to three pieces of digital content daily. Engagement is measured using social media metrics, and the intervention is adjusted based on real-time feedback. The study evaluates digital behavior change methods in a closed social media setting.

Randomization Method

Method: Randomization is done using a computer-generated random number algorithm by an independent assistant.

Randomization Unit

Unit: Individuals (non-clustered).
Clustering: Not applicable.

Was the treatment clustered?

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters

The study is non-clustered, with a target of 50 participants.

Sample size: planned number of observations

The study involves three time points of data collection (baseline, mid-point, post-intervention) with surveys and social media engagement metrics.

Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms

Participants are evenly split: 25 in the intervention group, 25 in the waitlist control group.

Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)

No formal power calculation is performed due to the pilot nature of the study. Instead, a sample size of 50 was chosen based on feasibility guidelines and literature on pilot studies.

Supporting Documents and Materials

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