Covid-19 Mental Health Impacts on Work Productivity

Last registered on April 14, 2021
View Trial History

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Covid-19 Mental Health Impacts on Work Productivity
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0007544
Initial registration date
April 13, 2021

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
April 14, 2021, 11:09 AM EDT

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

Locations

Country
United States of America
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Ellis Magee
Affiliation
Florida State University
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

Additional Trial Information

Status
In development
Start date
2021-04-13
End date
2021-07-30
Keywords
Behavior, Firms & Productivity, Health
Additional Keywords
Covid-19, Mental Health Apps, Labor Productivity
JEL code(s)
I12, I31, J24, O33
Secondary IDs
Abstract
Emerging evidence suggests that work and movement restrictions, isolation, and fear of disease associated with the current pandemic are taking an emotional toll on wellbeing and work performance. I consider a strategy for improving wellbeing by broadening access to proven app-based mental health treatment. I hypothesize that use of a mental health app can improve emotional wellbeing and work productivity in the general population. I have designed a randomized controlled trial to test this hypothesis with the general American population.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Magee, Ellis. 2021. "Covid-19 Mental Health Impacts on Work Productivity." AEA RCT Registry. April 14. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.7544-1.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
The treatment condition will involve encouragement to use a mental wellness app.
Intervention Start Date
2021-04-13
Intervention End Date
2021-04-28

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
The primary outcomes are changes in stated mental wellbeing and changes in stated work productivity over the two-week duration of the experiment.
Primary Outcomes (explanation)
Stated mental wellbeing is reported by the participant and verified by checking against responses to the PHQ-2 and GAD-2.

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
This is a randomized controlled trial with one treatment arm and one control arm. The treatment condition is an intervention encouraging usage of a mental wellness app. The experiment involves measurement of emotional wellbeing and work productivity at the baseline and endline of the experiment.
Experimental Design Details
All 1000 participants in this experiment are assigned to complete baseline and endline surveys, two weeks apart. Participants in the treatment condition are additionally offered the opportunity to earn a bonus payment in exchange for using free mental wellness app Covid Coach, produced by the US Department of Veterans Affairs, for the duration of the experiment.
Randomization Method
Randomization is completed by the Qualtrics survey software
Randomization Unit
Individual
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
1000 individuals
Sample size: planned number of observations
1000 individuals
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
500 individuals control, 500 individuals treatment
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
The minimum detectable effect size, assuming 20% attrition, is 0.2 standard deviations.
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Florida State University Office for Human Subjects Protection
IRB Approval Date
2020-09-18
IRB Approval Number
STUDY00001643
Analysis Plan

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Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

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Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
No
Data Collection Complete
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials