Guided Feedback in an Online Game Impacts Decision Making

Understanding Decision Making Using a Text-based Game

The purpose of the study is to evaluate the use of a text-based game as a way to understand decision making and knowledge related to anxiety, stress, and mood states like depression or loneliness. The investigators are interested in identifying whether participants who are given feedback before and during the game will report changes in behavior or depressive symptoms over the course of a one-week period. This is a follow-up to the published study from the researchers.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Depressive Symptoms
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Video; Behavioral: Active game; Behavioral: Neutral game

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 350
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • New York
    • Annandale-on-Hudson, New York, United States, 12504
      • Bard College

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

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

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• 18+ age
• Eligible to participate in online research
• Able to read and respond in English

Exclusion Criteria:

• None

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Other
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Factorial Assignment
• Masking: Quadruple

Number of Arms

6

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
No Intervention: No intervention
Experimental: Video; Short video with BA intervention ideas	Behavioral: Video; Video uses BA techniques for approximately 5 minutes
Experimental: Active game; Feedback Twine game	Behavioral: Active game; Game provides positive feedback in response to decisions made by participants
Sham Comparator: Neutral game; Neutral Twine game	Behavioral: Neutral game; Game without feedback
Experimental: Video + Active game; Combines Video and Active game	Behavioral: Video; Video uses BA techniques for approximately 5 minutes; Behavioral: Active game; Game provides positive feedback in response to decisions made by participants
Active Comparator: Video + Neutral game; Combines Video and Neutral game	Behavioral: Video; Video uses BA techniques for approximately 5 minutes; Behavioral: Neutral game; Game without feedback

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
patient health questionnaire (PHQ; 8 items)	The PHQ measures depression; scores range from 0 to 24 with higher scores indicating more depression.	baseline (T0) - before intervention
patient health questionnaire (PHQ; 8 items)	The PHQ measures depression; scores range from 0 to 24 with higher scores indicating more depression.	one week following intervention (T1)
Behavior in study-specific game	For participants completing the game (neutral or active), behavior and choices made will be used as data for analyses. Game choices allow participants to decide what next activities they will "do" in the game. Analyses incorporate decision probabilities (which of 2-5 choices are selected) and compare them between conditions. The game is completed at baseline following assessment (and following video) for those assigned this arm only.	Completed at baseline (T0)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7 (GAD-7)	7-item measure of generalized anxiety; scores range from 0 to 21 with higher scores indicating more anxiety.	Baseline (T0) before intervention
Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7 (GAD-7)	7-item measure of generalized anxiety; scores range from 0 to 21 with higher scores indicating more anxiety.	one-week follow-up (T1)

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Bard College
• Collaborators: University of Texas at Austin

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): February 2, 2022
• Primary Completion (Actual): May 4, 2022
• Study Completion (Actual): May 4, 2022

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: June 14, 2023
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 22, 2023
• First Posted (Actual): June 29, 2023

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): June 29, 2023
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 22, 2023
• Last Verified: June 1, 2023

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: depressive symptoms
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Behavioral Symptoms; Depression
• Other Study ID Numbers: 2021NOV10-DAI

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: YES
• IPD Plan Description: Data and code for analyses have been shared on the Open Science Framework, https://osf.io/
• IPD Sharing Time Frame: IPD will be available when the study is submitted for publication, beginning in 2023.
• IPD Sharing Access Criteria: Anyone will be able to access de-identified data and code.
• IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type: STUDY_PROTOCOL; ANALYTIC_CODE

Drug and device information, study documents

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