Digital Mental Health and Wellness Intervention for Adults: A Randomized Control Trial of COMET (COMET)

October 1, 2021 updated by: University of Pennsylvania

Developing and Assessing a Digital Mental Health and Wellness Intervention for Adults: Randomized Control Trial of the Common Elements Toolbox (COMET)

The investigators are evaluating the acceptability and effectiveness of brief online wellness modules. Participants will be randomly assigned to the intervention condition, an active control condition, or a wait-list control condition. The investigators are using a factorial design, such that each participant in the intervention condition will be randomly assigned to receive three of four wellness modules.

The investigators will analyze the intervention's effectiveness as a universal intervention (using the full sample) and a targeted intervention (using the subset of the sample that reported elevated depressive symptoms or anxiety symptoms at baseline).

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Anticipated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
2500

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Pennsylvania
      • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, 19104
        • Recruiting
        • University of Pennsylvania

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (ADULT, OLDER_ADULT)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Adult participants (at least 18 years old) will be eligible for this study.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: SUPPORTIVE_CARE
  • Allocation: RANDOMIZED
  • Interventional Model: PARALLEL
  • Masking: DOUBLE

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
EXPERIMENTAL: COMET
Participants receive modules focused on cognitive restructuring, gratitude, behavioral activation and self-compassion. Participants were randomized to receive 3 of the 4 possible modules: behavioral activation, cognitive restructuring, gratitude, and self-compassion.Participants in the intervention condition were randomized to receive descriptions of the four modules at the beginning of the intervention that were phrased to focus on building and improving strengths (positive) or reducing negative emotions and behaviors (negative).
Other: Common Elements Toolbox- Adult version (COMET-A)
COMET includes four different modules that teach participants exercises designed to improve mental health and well-being. Participants are asked to complete exercises focused on behavioral activation, cognitive restructuring, gratitude and self-compassion. At the end of the intervention, participants are sent templates that they can you to complete the exercises on, and are encouraged to continue practicing their exercises in their daily life.
SHAM_COMPARATOR: Self-Awareness Control
Participants learn about self-awareness through writing about memories, writing a short argumentative essay, and noticing objects in their surroundings.
Other: Self-awareness Control
A control condition in which participants learn about self-awareness through writing about memories, writing a short argumentative essay, and noticing objects in their surroundings.
NO_INTERVENTION: Waitlist
Participants filled out all pre-test and post-test measures without having access to COMET of the active control exercises. Participants in this condition will receive access to COMET at the end of the study.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9)
Time Frame: Up to 12 weeks post-intervention
Depression questionnaire. Scores range from 0 to 27. Lower scores indicate less depression.
Up to 12 weeks post-intervention
Change in Generalized Anxiety Disorder Screener-7 (GAD-7)
Time Frame: Up to 12 weeks post-intervention
Anxiety questionnaire. Total scores range from 0-21. Lower scores indicate less anxiety.
Up to 12 weeks post-intervention
Change in Short Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (SWEMWBS)
Time Frame: Up to 12 weeks post-intervention
Subjective Well-being questionnaire. Total scores range from 7 to 35. Higher values indicate higher well-being scores.
Up to 12 weeks post-intervention
Ratings of Acceptability of Intervention Measure (AIM)
Time Frame: Immediately after the intervention
Questionnaire measuring the acceptability of an intervention. Acceptability refers to the perception that a given treatment is agreeable or satisfactory. The total score ranges from 4 to 20. Higher scores indicate higher acceptability ratings.
Immediately after the intervention
Mechanism Questions
Time Frame: Up to 12 weeks post-intervention

Participants answered questions relating to each module's mechanism of change on a 7-point Likert Scale, from "strongly disagree" to "strongly agree".

Specifically, we asked participants:

  • How capable they feel about managing negative thoughts
  • If they will intentionally spend time doing activities they enjoy
  • If they will notice and appreciate good things
  • If they will be able to treat themselves with empathy and compassion
Up to 12 weeks post-intervention
Ability to Cope with COVID-19
Time Frame: Up to 12 weeks post-intervention

2 questions related to their ability to cope with stressors over the upcoming weeks (including challenges relating to COVID-19). Participants answered these questions on a 7-point Likert Scale, from "strongly disagree" to "strongly agree". Specifically, we asked participants:

  • if they will be able to handle lifestyle changes due to the coronavirus,
  • if the pandemic will have an extremely negative impact on their life.
Up to 12 weeks post-intervention
Secondary Control
Time Frame: Up to 12 weeks post-intervention

We asked participants three items to assess secondary control (Weisz et al., 2010). The items are scored on a 4-point Likert scale, ranging from 0 ("Very false") to 3 ("Very true").

The three items are:

  • When something bad happens, I can find a way to think about it that makes me feel better.
  • After a really hard day, I can make myself feel better by remembering some good things that happened.
  • When bad things happen to me that I can't control, there are lots of things I can do to feel better.

Higher scores will indicate greater secondary control.
Up to 12 weeks post-intervention
Perceived Utility
Time Frame: Immediately after the intervention

Participants were asked to rate three items relating to the perceived utility of each module. Specifically, we asked participants:

  • How helpful the module was
  • How engaging the module was
  • How much they will continue applying content from the module

Higher scores will indicate greater perceived utility.
Immediately after the intervention

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
University of Pennsylvania

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Study Director: Robert J DeRubeis, PhD, University of Pennsylvania

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (ACTUAL)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
January 31, 2021

Primary Completion (ANTICIPATED)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
January 1, 2022

Study Completion (ANTICIPATED)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
June 1, 2022

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
October 5, 2020

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
October 12, 2020

First Posted (ACTUAL)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
October 14, 2020

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (ACTUAL)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
October 4, 2021

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
October 1, 2021

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
October 1, 2021

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 30845924

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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