The Optimization and Evaluation of the Extremism and Intolerance Curriculum for the Kingdom of Bahrain.

Researcher from UNC Greensboro have partnered with Prevention Strategies and key stakeholders from the Kingdom of Bahrain to conduct a study using the innovative, engineering-inspired methodological approach, the Multiphase Optimization Strategy (MOST), to optimize and evaluate the Peaceful Coexistence and Anti-Extremism middle and high school curricula. No other curriculum targeting tolerance and/or extremism has been optimized using the state-of-the-art MOST methodology. The overall goal of the project is that the optimized versions of Peaceful Coexistence and Anti-Extremism curricula will be used across the Kingdom of Bahrain and translated for use in other countries to combat the spread of extremism and intolerance. Additionally, the D.A.R.E. keepin' it REAL (kiR) and D.A.R.E. myPlaybook high school programs will be evaluated as part of the Peaceful Coexistence and Anti-Extremism evaluation.

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Tolerance; Empathy; Literacy; Norm, Social; Resistance Skills; Beliefs About Consequences; Decision Making Skills; Open Mindedness; Active Citizenship; Anti-extremism
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Peaceful Coexistence

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Anticipated): 1500
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Jeff Milroy, DrPH; Phone Number: 3365090672; Email: jjmilroy@uncg.edu
• Study Contact Backup: Name: Melissa Beck; Email: mdbeck@uncg.edu

Study Locations

• United States
  • North Carolina
    • Greensboro, North Carolina, United States, 27401
      • Recruiting
      • UNC Greensboro
      • Contact: Jeff Milroy; Phone Number: 336-509-0672; Email: jjmilroy@uncg.edu

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 11 years to 18 years (Child, Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Public or private Bahraini middle or high school students.
• In addition to the main evaluation questions, the following groups will also be included to make programmatic improvements.
• Parents of above mentioned middle or high school students.
• D.A.R.E. Officers teaching middle school and high school D.A.R.E. in Bahrain.

Exclusion Criteria:

• None

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

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Intervention; Classrooms assigned to the intervention group will receive the Peaceful Coexistence (middle school) or Anti-extremism (high school) curricula.	Behavioral: Peaceful Coexistence; The Peaceful Coexistence intervention seeks to target important risk and protective factors related to tolerance and acceptance. The Anti-Extremism intervention seeks to take the same risk and protective factors covered in the Peaceful Coexistence intervention and have students' psychosocial factors shift their skills and behavior.; Other Names: Anti-Extremism
No Intervention: No intervention; Classrooms assigned to the No intervention group will receive general information during their sessions.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Norms about intolerance	Participant's mean rating of norms related to intolerance of others measured by the intolerance norms scale.	immediately post intervention
Dignity	Mean rating of dignity reported by participants measured by the Jacelon Attributed Dignity Scale.	immediately post intervention
Plurality	Mean rating of religious plurality reported by participants using the Religious Plurality scale.	immediately post intervention
Beliefs about consequences	Mean rating of participant beliefs about consequences related to not listening to different opinions of others measured by the Beliefs about intolerance consequences scale.	immediately post intervention
Source literacy	Mean rating of participants' reported source literacy measured by the Source literacy scale.	immediately post intervention
Resistance skills	Mean rating of participants' reported efficacy to resist religiously, politically, or socially extreme sentiments measured by the Resistance skills scale.	immediately post intervention
Decision making	Mean rating of participants' report of decision making skills measured by the Decision making skills scale.	immediately post intervention
Empathy	Mean rating of participants' empathy toward people and opinions that are different from their own measured by the Emotional Quotient Scale.	immediately post intervention
Tolerance of different opinions and behaviors of others	Mean rating pf participants' reporting of expectations of others based on tolerant behaviors measured by the Tolerance of others scale.	immediately post intervention
Open Mindedness to differing opinions	Mean ratings of participants' report of open mindedness of differing political, social, and religious ideals measured by the Open Minded Cognition Scale.	immediately post intervention
Non-Violent Conflict Resolution	Mean rating of participants' ideals related to non-violent conflict resolution measured by the Normative Beliefs about Aggression Scale.	immediately post intervention
Community values	Mean rating of participants' opinions related to their expectations of other as it pertains to extremist behaviors measured by the community values scale.	immediately post intervention

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of North Carolina, Greensboro

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): November 1, 2021
• Primary Completion (Anticipated): December 1, 2023
• Study Completion (Anticipated): December 1, 2023

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: September 13, 2021
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: October 8, 2021
• First Posted (Actual): October 22, 2021

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): November 3, 2022
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 2, 2022
• Last Verified: November 1, 2022

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Other Study ID Numbers: IRB-FY21-66

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No