A Media Parenting Prevention Intervention

April 21, 2026 updated by: University of Florida

A Web-Based Media Parenting Intervention to Prevent Youth Substance Use

Entertainment media commonly depict SU, and youth exposure to media SU is linked to youth initiation and progression of SU behavior. Parenting practices reduce exposure to and may mitigate risk associated with media depictions of SU, thus this research proposal will build upon current understanding of effective media parenting with the end goal of developing and testing a media parenting intervention designed to reduce youth risk for SU.

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.

Detailed Description

Youth substance use (SU) is associated with many negative developmental outcomes including morbidity and mortality. Initiation of SU typically occurs during adolescence, and SU behavior often co-occurs with other risk behaviors (e.g., risky sexual behavior). Exposure to SU in the media is a well-documented influence on SU behavior, as it predicts early onset SU and progression to more problematic SU behavior. Media effects, while demonstrated to be consistent, stable, and strong even accounting for other social influences and personality characteristics, have received little attention in preventative SU research; yet youth exposure to media SU is a modifiable environmental risk for youth SU behavior. Parents can mitigate SU risk by limiting media SU exposures and intervening when youth are exposed. Parents report lack of media parenting skills, however, and no media parenting intervention designed specifically to reduce youth risk for SU exists. This project will examine the role of media parenting behaviors to reduce risk for early onset of youth SU. This program of research focuses on media depictions of SU, an important social and environmental influence implicated in the development, maintenance, and treatment of SU disorders. Specifically, the aims of this project are to target media-related mechanisms underlying SU initiation and associated risk factors as they relate to youth development. Improved understanding of specific parenting behaviors that contribute to prevention of youth SU, and mechanisms by which parenting behaviors may reduce risk related to media could inform the development of new and more effective interventions. Research aims in this application are designed to progress towards the end goal of developing a scalable, evidence-informed media parenting intervention to reduce youth risk for SU. The T.E.C.H. Parenting intervention will be tested in a sample of 120 parent participants (Aim 2 of grant protocol). Innovations include the use of web-based intervention content with supplemental push messaging to participants. Implementation data will be collected as part of the RCT to determine feasibility of web-delivered components of intervention content as well as usability and acceptability of intervention content from participants. This project is highly innovative in the use of technology to support parental engagement and dissemination of intervention. Further, web delivery of content provides an opportunity for parents to practice media parenting skills within the digital environment in a way that is adapted to the needs of the individual family and can be implemented in a range of diverse clinical settings.

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 (Estimated)

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.
120

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 Contact Backup

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Florida
      • Gainesville, Florida, United States, 32610
        • Recruiting
        • University of Florida
        • Contact:

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

10 years to 14 years (Child)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

Parents must

  • have at least one middle school-aged child who resides with them
  • be able to read at the 6th grade level in English
  • have access to the internet and a smartphone to participate in web-based intervention groups and receive intervention push messages.

Exclusion Criteria:

-NA

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: Prevention
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

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: Intervention Arm - T.E.C.H. Parenting
Intervention Arm participants will enroll in a web-based psychoeducational group (15 parents per group across 4 groups). Participants will receive psychoeducational information on media parenting, and they will be invited to participate in an online group discussion board to share their experiences with other parents in the intervention. In weeks 2-5, participants will learn about 4 domains of media parenting: 1) Talk to your child about media; 2) Educate your child about media-related risks; 3) Co-View/Co-Use media and technology actively with your child; and 4) establish House rules for media usage. Week 6 will review information and provide an "expert clinician" to support parent problem solving. Participants will receive 2-3 weekly push messages via text messaging prompting practice of skills learned in the group setting. Participants will be assessed at baseline, immediately following the 6 week intervention, and 3 months after the intervention is completed.
Behavioral: Intervention Arm - T.E.C.H. Parenting
Intervention Arm participants will enroll in a web-based psychoeducational group (15 parents per group across 4 groups). Participants will receive psychoeducational information on media parenting, and they will be invited to participate in an online group discussion board to share their experiences with other parents in the intervention. In weeks 2-5, participants will learn about 4 domains of media parenting: 1) Talk to your child about media; 2) Educate your child about media-related risks; 3) Co-View/Co-Use media and technology actively with your child; and 4) establish House rules for media usage. Week 6 will review information and provide an "expert clinician" to support parent problem solving. Participants will receive 2-3 weekly push messages via text messaging prompting practice of skills learned in the group setting. Participants will be assessed at baseline, immediately following the 6 week intervention, and 3 months after the intervention is completed.
Active Comparator: Control Arm - General Positive Parenting
The Control Arm of the RCT is the attention control group. These participants will enroll in a web-based psychoeducational group (four groups of 15 parents each). They will receive 6 weeks of online psychoeducational material, including 2-3 push messages prompting skill practice. Parents will have access to an online discussion board to share experiences with other parents. This group will match the intervention arm of the study in number of study staff contacts, time of start/duration of the group, peer support, and availability of a professional in week six for consultation on parenting issues. Control participants will not receive information on media parenting. Participants in this group will be assessed at baseline, immediately following the six-week intervention period, and 3 months after intervention completion. Participants will be asked about exposure to TECH Parenting content at baseline and follow up to address potential contamination effects across study arms.
Behavioral: Control Arm - General Positive Parenting
The Control Arm of the RCT is the attention control group. These participants will enroll in a web-based psychoeducational group (four groups of 15 parents each). They will receive 6 weeks of online psychoeducational material, including 2-3 push messages prompting skill practice. Parents will have access to an online discussion board to share experiences with other parents. This group will match the intervention arm of the study in number of study staff contacts, time of start/duration of the group, peer support, and availability of a professional in week six for consultation on parenting issues. Control participants will not receive information on media parenting. Participants in this group will be assessed at baseline, immediately following the six-week intervention period, and 3 months after intervention completion. Participants will be asked about exposure to TECH Parenting content at baseline and followup to address potential contamination effects across study arms.

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
Media Parenting Behavior - Parent Report
Time Frame: Baseline up to Year 3
The TECH Parenting measure is a 24 item indicator of general media parenting behaviors across four 6-item subscales: Talk; Educate; Co-Use; and House Rules. This measure has demonstrated reliability and predictive value for youth online risk behaviors.
Baseline up to Year 3

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 Florida

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)

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.
  • Principal Investigator: Joy Gabrielli, University of Florida

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.
May 12, 2025

Primary Completion (Estimated)

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.
May 30, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

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.
May 30, 2026

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).
April 11, 2022

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.
April 11, 2022

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.
April 18, 2022

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.
April 22, 2026

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.
April 21, 2026

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.
June 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

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.
  • IRB202301401 (University of Florida)
  • R34DA052793 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)
  • PRO00036387 (Other Identifier: University of Florida)
  • IRB202101350 (Other Identifier: University of Florida)

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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