Graphic Messages to Prevent E-Cigarette Use Among Black and Latino Adolescents

Graphic Messages to Prevent E-Cigarette Use Among Latino and African American Adolescents: A Randomized Controlled Trial

The aim of this study is to determine if graphic messages prevent future vaping use among African American and Latino adolescents. The images have been developed in a user-design model and include four main themes: health reward, financial reward, self-efficacy, and social norms. We will assess pre- and post-exposure reactions on likelihood of future vaping among African American and Latino adolescents.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Vaping
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Financial reward graphic message; Behavioral: Health reward graphic message; Behavioral: Self-efficacy graphic message; Behavioral: Social norms graphic message

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 362
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • New York
    • Rochester, New York, United States, 14642
      • University of Rochester Medical Center

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 12 years to 17 years (Child)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• self-identify as African American/Black and/or Hispanic/Latino
• know how to read and speak English and/or Spanish
• have never used e-cigarettes
• have access to a device that will be able to connect to the online survey

Exclusion Criteria:

• not identifying as African American/Black and/or Hispanic/Latino
• using e-cigarettes

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

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

Number of Arms

4

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Financial reward graphic message	Behavioral: Financial reward graphic message; Graphic image will be shared with the participants online once in either English or Spanish depending on their language of preference. Image includes the following text: Vaping leads to nothing. Don't let your money vaporize away.
Experimental: Health reward graphic message	Behavioral: Health reward graphic message; Graphic image will be shared with the participants online once in either English or Spanish depending on their language of preference. Image includes the following text: Dying for a vape? It hurts more than you know.
Experimental: Self-efficacy graphic message	Behavioral: Self-efficacy graphic message; Graphic image will be shared with the participants online once in either English or Spanish depending on their language of preference. Image includes the following text: Vaping companies are targeting Black and Latino teens. Your life matters. Don't let them take it away.
Experimental: Social norms graphic message	Behavioral: Social norms graphic message; Graphic image will be shared with the participants online once in either English or Spanish depending on their language of preference. Image includes the following text: Just because vaping is common, doesn't mean it's cool. Stay woke. Don't smoke.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in Percentage of Participants Susceptible to Future Vaping	Susceptibility to future vaping was assessed before and after exposure to the graphic messages. Informed by prior foundational research on youth electronic cigarette use, susceptibility was measured with three items assessing curiosity, intent, and social influence. Participants were asked, "Have you ever been curious about using e-cigarettes/vaping?", "Do you think that you will use e-cigarettes/vape in the next 12 months?", and "If one of your best friends were to offer you an e-cigarette/electronic vapor product, would you use it?" (1 = "Definitely not" to 4 = "Definitely yes"). Responses were dichotomized: participants were categorized as susceptible if they answered anything other than "Definitely not" to at least one item. The percentage of susceptible participants was calculated before and after exposure; change in percentage reflects the difference.	baseline to post-intervention, approximately 1 day

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Percentage of Participants Satisfied or Very Satisfied With the Graphic Message	Satisfaction with the assigned vaping prevention graphic message was assessed using the item: "How satisfied are you with the image?" Responses were recorded on a 5-point Likert scale from 1 = "Extremely unsatisfied" to 5 = "Extremely satisfied." Participants selecting 5 ("Extremely satisfied") were categorized as satisfied. The percentage of satisfied participants was calculated per group. Higher percentages indicate greater satisfaction with the message.	Day 1
Percent of Participants Who Would Recommend the Graphic Message to a Friend	participants were asked, "Would you recommend this picture to a friend?" with response options of Yes or No. The percentage of participants who responded "Yes" was calculated per group. Higher percentages indicate greater endorsement of the message.	Day 1

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Rochester
• Collaborators: National Cancer Institute (NCI)

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): August 6, 2021
• Primary Completion (Actual): December 15, 2021
• Study Completion (Actual): December 15, 2021

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: May 19, 2021
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 19, 2021
• First Posted (Actual): May 25, 2021

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): August 1, 2025
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 14, 2025
• Last Verified: February 1, 2022

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Other Study ID Numbers: STUDY00006267; U54CA228110 (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