Evaluation of a Novel Intervention Aimed at Instilling Future-oriented Mindsets and Behaviors Using a Smartphone Application and Immersive Virtual Reality

Short-term thinking, or the inability to make informed tradeoffs between immediate benefits and longer-term costs, has been related to a variety of negative or self-defeating behaviors, such as substance use, impulsive decision making, and delinquency, whereas future-oriented thinking tends to be positively associated with positive behaviors, such as self-esteem, planning, and goal-directed behaviors. To bolster people's psychosocial development, the investigators are developing an intervention, FutureU, aimed at instilling future-oriented mindsets and behaviors by strengthening people's identification with who they may be in the future, i.e., their 'future self'. Through the use of a smartphone application (app) and immersive virtual reality (VR), participants interact with a visual representation of their future self. In the present study, the investigators will evaluate the current iteration of this intervention and compare the FutureU app and FutureU VR with each other and with a goal-setting control group. Knowledge and insights gained from this study will be used to further develop the FutureU intervention program and can provide insights for intervention theory building and implementation strategies.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Future Orientation; Self-defeating Behavior; Future Self-identification
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: FutureU; Behavioral: Goal-setting

Detailed Description

People with a short-term mindset tend be focused on the here-and-now and are inclined to disregard the more distant consequences of their actions. This often results in self-defeating behaviors, i.e., behaviors that provide immediate gains but that may simultaneously incur significant costs in the longer run (e.g., substance use, delinquency, overspending). In contrast, people who are more future-oriented typically balance the immediate gains against the longer-term consequences of their decisions and are more inclined to set goals for the future. The investigators are developing an intervention, FutureU, aiming to promote future-oriented mindsets and behaviors by strengthening people's identification with their 'future self'. The level of identification with the future self depends on the extent to which people are able to vividly imagine their future self (i.e., vividness), feel positively towards their future self (i.e., valence), and feel similar and connected to their future self (i.e., related). During the intervention, participants interact with their future self. This future self is developed on the basis of a digitally aged image of themselves. In order to present the visual representation of the participants' future self, the investigators implement the intervention via a smartphone application (app) and via immersive virtual reality (VR). The present study examines the current iteration of the FutureU intervention, which is developed within an ongoing research program. The findings of this study will be used to further develop and optimize the FutureU intervention.

In a three-armed Randomized Controlled Trial, the investigators will evaluate the FutureU intervention by examining 1) its effectiveness on both proximal and distal outcomes, 2) its working mechanisms, and 3) moderators of intervention effects. It is hypothesized that FutureU will increase participants' future-oriented mindsets and behaviors (e.g., increase future orientation, enhance goal achievement, and reduce self-defeating behaviors). There are no specific expectations regarding differences in effectiveness between the two implementation strategies (app vs. VR). Regarding the working mechanisms, the hypothesis is that intervention effects of FutureU are mediated by increases in future self-identification. Concerning moderators, the investigators will examine the moderating role of personality traits within an intervention context in an exploratory fashion. Furthermore, associations between usage patterns (e.g., length and frequency of use), engagement levels and intervention outcomes will be examined, and the goals set by the participants will be analyzed qualitatively and quantitatively.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 321
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Netherlands
  • Zuid-Holland
    • Leiden, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands, 2333AK
      • Leiden University

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Child; Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• First-year university student
• Dutch speaking

Exclusion Criteria:

• Epileptic symptoms (due to VR condition)

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

3

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Smartphone-based intervention	Behavioral: FutureU; FutureU is based on the assumption that future orientation can be strengthened by increasing the extent to which people identify with their future self. People who identify more with their future self appear to be more inclined to make more altruistic choices favoring their future self and foregoing immediate gratification. The intervention provides psychoeducation and exposure to and interaction with the future self. Participants interact with a digitally aged version of themselves, i.e., their 'future self', using a smartphone application (app) or through immersive virtual reality (VR). The app consists of three week-long modules. Participants interact with the app on a daily basis for about 5 minutes a day for 21 consecutive days. The VR consists of three sessions, each lasting about 30 minutes. Each VR session is guided by a trained researcher.
Experimental: Virtual reality intervention	Behavioral: FutureU; FutureU is based on the assumption that future orientation can be strengthened by increasing the extent to which people identify with their future self. People who identify more with their future self appear to be more inclined to make more altruistic choices favoring their future self and foregoing immediate gratification. The intervention provides psychoeducation and exposure to and interaction with the future self. Participants interact with a digitally aged version of themselves, i.e., their 'future self', using a smartphone application (app) or through immersive virtual reality (VR). The app consists of three week-long modules. Participants interact with the app on a daily basis for about 5 minutes a day for 21 consecutive days. The VR consists of three sessions, each lasting about 30 minutes. Each VR session is guided by a trained researcher.
Active Comparator: Goal-setting control condition	Behavioral: Goal-setting; In the control condition participants set goals (as in the intervention conditions), but receive no further guidance.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Future self-identification	Future self-identification, that is, the degree to which people have a clear image of their future self and can identify with their future self, will be assessed with 8 items based on Hershfield et al. (2009) and Van Gelder et al. (2015). These items measure the degree to which people can imagine their future self vividly (i.e., vividness), the level of positive feelings towards the future self (i.e., valence), and the extent to which people feel connected and similar to their future self (i.e., relatedness).	Change from baseline to 6-months follow-up (assessed at baseline, 1 and 2 weeks after baseline (i.e., during the intervention), 3 weeks after baseline (i.e., post measurement), and 3- and 6-months follow-up)
Future Orientation	Future orientation measuring time perspective, anticipation of future consequences, and planning ahead will be assessed with the Future orientation Scale (Steinberg et al., 2009) consisting of 15 items (α = .80).	Change from baseline to 6-months follow-up (assessed at baseline, 1 and 2 weeks after baseline (i.e., during the intervention), 3 weeks after baseline (i.e., post measurement), and 3- and 6-months follow-up)
Consideration of future consequences	The degree to which people take immediate versus distant consequences into account in potential behaviors will be assessed with the Consideration of Future Consequences questionnaire (Bruderer Enzler, 2013; Strathman et al., 1994) consisting of 9 items.	Change from baseline to 6-months follow-up (assessed at baseline, 3 weeks after baseline (i.e., post measurement), and 3- and 6-months follow-up)
Self-defeating behavior	Self-defeating behavior, that is, behaviors with immediate gains though long-term costs, will be measured with 15 items representing different self-defeating behaviors based on the measure of Van Gelder et al. (2015).	Change from baseline to 6-months follow-up (assessed at baseline, 1 and 2 weeks after baseline (i.e., during the intervention), 3 weeks after baseline (i.e., post measurement), and 3- and 6-months follow-up)
Goal commitment	Commitment to the goal participants set for the year will be measured using the Goal Commitment Questionnaire (Hollenbeck et al., 1989) which consists of 7 items (α = .71).	Change from baseline to 6-months follow-up (assessed at baseline, 3 weeks after baseline (i.e., post measurement), and 3- and 6-months follow-up)
Goal achievement	Weekly and monthly goal achievement will be assessed with 3 self-developed items measuring how often participants thought about their goal, worked towards their goal, and to what extend they achieved their goal.	Assessed during the 3-week intervention.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Self-efficacy	Self-efficacy, that is, people's sense of competence to effectively deal with life stressors, will be measured with the General Self-efficacy Questionnaire (Schwarzer & Jerusalem, 1995) consisting of 10 items (range α = .75 - .91).	Change from baseline to 6-months follow-up (assessed at baseline, 3 weeks after baseline (i.e., post measurement), and 3- and 6-months follow-up)
Academic results	Academic results, i.e., grade point average, will be requested from the university at the end of the academic year after participants' consent.	Up to 10 months after baseline
Impulsiveness	Impulsiveness, indicated by lack of impulse control on planning, motor, and attention will be assessed with the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale short form (Spinella, 2007) consisting of 15 items (α = .79).	Change from baseline to 6-months follow-up (assessed at baseline, 3 weeks after baseline (i.e., post measurement), and 3- and 6-months follow-up)

Other Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Thinking about the future	We will ask participants how often in the past week they thought about their future and their future self (2 items).	Change from baseline to 6-months follow-up (assessed at baseline, 1 and 2 weeks after baseline (i.e., during the intervention), 3 weeks after baseline (i.e., post measurement), and 3- and 6-months follow-up)
Personality	Personality will be measured with the Dutch version of the 60-item HEXACO-PI-R (Lee & Asthon, 2018). This questionnaire measures 6 personality dimensions: Honesty-Humility, Emotionality, Extraversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, and Openness to Experience. Dimensions are assessed with 10 items each (range α = .82 - .89).	Assessed at baseline and 6-months follow-up.
Users' engagement and log data of the smartphone application	In the FutureU app condition, we use the nine-item TWente Engagement with Ehealth Technologies Scale (TWEETS) to measure users' engagement with the app (range α = .86 - .87). We measure engagement with the app's specific features (e.g., opinion regarding the avatar appearance, and specific modules) with self-developed items. Participants' usage patterns are captured in the app its log-data (e.g., number of days the app was opened and time spent in the app).	Assessed during the 3-week intervention.
Users' engagement and log data of the FutureU immersive virtual reality	In the FutureU VR condition, we measure users' experiences within and of the VR (e.g., embodiment, presence, and appearance avatar) and participants' (objective) behavioral data in VR (e.g., total time spent in the VR environment, number of switches between avatars, what questions they ask their future self).	Assessed during the 3-week intervention.
Participants' goals	Qualitative assessment of the goals participants set at the start and during the intervention, measuring aspects such as goal specificity, goal difficulty, topic of the goal, and goal type.	Assessed during the 3-week intervention.

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Universiteit Leiden
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Jean-Louis van Gelder, Prof.dr.dr., Max Planck Institute for the Study of Crime, Security, and Law; Leiden University

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): October 19, 2022
• Primary Completion (Actual): December 31, 2023
• Study Completion (Actual): January 31, 2024

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: October 5, 2022
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: October 10, 2022
• First Posted (Actual): October 13, 2022

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): May 8, 2024
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 7, 2024
• Last Verified: May 1, 2024

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Randomized Controlled Trial; Intervention; Virtual reality; Engagement; Smartphone application; Goals; Digital behavior change intervention; Future self-identification; Future orientation; Self-defeating behavior; Short-term mindsets; Long-term mindsets
• Other Study ID Numbers: 772911-CRIMETIME

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: UNDECIDED

Drug and device information, study documents

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