Understanding Vape Counter-Marketing Study

November 9, 2026 updated by: Shivani Gaiha, Boston Children's Hospital

Countering E-Cigarette Marketing in the Retail Environment Among Adolescents and Young Adults

The goal of this interventional study is to test whether short videos of electronic-cigarette (e-cigarette) counter-marketing lessons work to decrease people's intent to use and smoke e-cigarettes. Using short videos, the investigators hope to inform participants about the marketing strategies that e-cigarette companies use to try to get people to purchase and use e-cigarettes. The investigators hope to find that, after watching the short videos, people will be able to point out when e-cigarette companies are trying to sell their products, and hopefully they will have a lower interest in buying and using e-cigarettes. The investigators also hope participants will learn more about the addictiveness and harmfulness of using e-cigarettes by watching the short videos.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Not yet 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 (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.
2556

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

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

13 years to 21 years (Child, Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • 13-21 years old
  • Fluent in English
  • Owns a smartphone or other device that can be used to complete study activities (e.g., watching videos, responding to electronic surveys)
  • Meets sampling ratio to match the US Census for sex assigned at birth, race, and ethnicity

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Fails survey validation checks (e.g., completing the survey too quickly, providing the same answer to every question)

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: Single

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: New Intervention Group

Participants in this arm will receive a novel intervention developed by the study team.
Other: Influencer Intervention Videos

Participants will view 4 short-form videos filmed by influencers. Influencers convey messaging designed to counter e-cigarette marketing in retail stores.
Active Comparator: Pre-existing Intervention

Participants will receive a comparable, pre-existing intervention not developed by the study team.
Other: Public Domain Messaging Videos

Participants will view 1 video in the public domain with messaging on e-cigarette marketing tactics.
Other: Control Condition

Participants will receive a control condition that was not developed by the study team.
Other: Influencer Control Videos

Participants will view 4 short-form influencer-generated videos on topics that are unrelated to counter e-cigarette marketing in retail stores.

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
Susceptibility to use e-cigarettes among those who never used
Time Frame: From Day 1 (Baseline/Pre-intervention) to Day 31 (One-month follow-up after the treatment).

Susceptibility to use e-cigarettes among those who never used [Susceptibility scores are calculated based on the following 4 items:

  1. Do you think you will try/ use a nicotine vape in the next year?
  2. Do you think that you will try/use a nicotine vape soon?
  3. If one of your best friends were to offer you a nicotine vape, would you try/use it?
  4. Have you ever been curious about trying/using a nicotine vape? Response options for the first three items are: 1 = definitely not, 2 = probably not, 3 = probably yes, and 4 = definitely yes, and for the fourth item were: 1 = not at all curious, 2 = a little curious, 3 = somewhat curious, and 4 = very curious. Per Persoskie and O'Brien (2022), the four items are averaged to create a single index.]

O'Brien EK, Baig SA, Persoskie A. Developing and Validating Measures of Absolute and Relative E-Cigarette Product Risk Perceptions: Single Items Can Be Surprisingly Comprehensive. Nicotine Tob Res. 2022;24(3):316-323. doi:10.1093/ntr/n
From Day 1 (Baseline/Pre-intervention) to Day 31 (One-month follow-up after the treatment).

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
E-cigarette Use
Time Frame: From Day 1 (Baseline/Pre-intervention) to Day 31 (One-month follow-up after the treatment).

  1. Have you EVER used any of the following products, even one or two puffs

  2. During the PAST 30 DAYS, have you used any of the following products, even one or two puffs?

  3. During the PAST 30 DAYS, on how many days (from 0 days to 30 days) did you use a… (numeric response)

  4. During the PAST 7 DAYS, have you used any of the following products, even one or two puffs?

  5. During the PAST 7 DAYS, on how many days (from 0 days to 7 days) did you use a…

  6. Other questions on age at first use, friend use and family use. All questions relate to the following products:

    • Nicotine vape
    • Some kind of vape (Don't know what was in it)
    • Cigarette
    • Nicotine pouch
From Day 1 (Baseline/Pre-intervention) to Day 31 (One-month follow-up after the treatment).
Intent to use e-cigarettes and cigarettes
Time Frame: From Day 1 (Baseline/Pre-intervention); Day 1 (Immediately Post-intervention); and Day 31 (One-month follow-up after the treatment)

Do participants plan to use e-cigarettes and cigarettes?
From Day 1 (Baseline/Pre-intervention); Day 1 (Immediately Post-intervention); and Day 31 (One-month follow-up after the treatment)
Vaping attitudes and norms
Time Frame: From Day 1 (Baseline/Pre-intervention); Day 1 (Immediately Post-intervention); and Day 31 (One-month follow-up after the treatment)

We will measure people's attitudes and acceptance towards vaping using: Vaping Attitudes Scale (5-point Likert-type; high score: positive attitude) and Mean Vaping Injunctive Norms Scale (3-item)
From Day 1 (Baseline/Pre-intervention); Day 1 (Immediately Post-intervention); and Day 31 (One-month follow-up after the treatment)
Pro-vaping marketing exposure (focused on retail), including marketing receptivity
Time Frame: From Day 1 (Baseline/Pre-intervention) Day 31 (One-month follow-up after the treatment)

Can people understand and recognize e-cigarette marketing? Does it have an effect on them?
From Day 1 (Baseline/Pre-intervention) Day 31 (One-month follow-up after the treatment)
Marketing exposure on social media
Time Frame: Day 1 (Baseline/Pre-intervention)

Questions to assess social media use, frequency, and platforms.
Day 1 (Baseline/Pre-intervention)
Anti-vaping content exposure
Time Frame: Day 1 (Baseline/Pre-intervention)

Prior exposure to having seen content that dissuades people from using vapes and locations where they saw it.
Day 1 (Baseline/Pre-intervention)
Knowledge of e-cigarette retail marketing
Time Frame: From Day 1 (Baseline/Pre-intervention); Day 1 (Immediately Post-intervention); and Day 31 (One-month follow-up after the treatment)

How much do people know about e-cigarette retail marketing (based on key messages and facts shown in video content)?
From Day 1 (Baseline/Pre-intervention); Day 1 (Immediately Post-intervention); and Day 31 (One-month follow-up after the treatment)
Perceived message effectiveness
Time Frame: Day 1 (Immediately post-intervention)

We will test the effectiveness of the videos using two scales, the Message Assessment Scale for Tobacco Prevention Campaigns, and the Perceived Message Effectiveness Scale (6-item).
Day 1 (Immediately post-intervention)
Video acceptability
Time Frame: Day 1 (Immediately post-treatment)

We will test how much people enjoyed and connected with the videos based on a quality rating scale and a question on alternative ways to receive content.
Day 1 (Immediately post-treatment)

Other Outcome Measures

Other Outcome Measures

For clinical trials, a planned measurement described in the protocol that is used to determine the effect of an intervention/treatment on participants. For observational studies, a measurement or observation that is used to describe patterns of diseases or traits, or associations with exposures, risk factors, or treatment. Types of outcome measures include primary outcome measure and secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Recruitment, enrollment, and attrition
Time Frame: From Day 1 (Baseline/Pre-intervention); Day 1 (Immediately Post-intervention); and Day 31 (One-month follow-up after the treatment)

We want to measure recruitment and enrollment success, and how many people complete the study.
From Day 1 (Baseline/Pre-intervention); Day 1 (Immediately Post-intervention); and Day 31 (One-month follow-up after the treatment)
Video feasibility
Time Frame: Day 1 (Immediately post-intervention)

We want to test whether people were able to watch the videos, how many of them they watched and for how long, and what devices they used to watch them.
Day 1 (Immediately post-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.
Boston Children's Hospital

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 Cancer Institute (NCI)
Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center (DF/HCC) Boston, MA

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 (Estimated)

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.
November 15, 2026

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.
April 30, 2027

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.
April 30, 2027

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).
November 3, 2026

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.
November 9, 2026

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.
November 13, 2026

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.
November 13, 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.
November 9, 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.
November 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

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.
  • 26-504
  • R00CA267477 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

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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