Social Media-based Electronic Bibliotherapy for Dementia Caregivers

Effects of Social Media-based Electronic Bibliotherapy on Improving the Well-being of Informal Caregivers of People With Dementia

This study aims to assess the efficacy of social media-based electronic bibliotherapy in improving the well-being of informal caregivers of people with dementia compared to a control group.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Quality of Life; Mental Health; Dementia Caregivers
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: Social media-based electronic bibliotherapy; Other: Usual care

Detailed Description

This randomized controlled trial aims to assess the efficacy of social media-based electronic bibliotherapy in improving the well-being of informal caregivers. Sixty informal caregivers of people with dementia were recruited and randomly allocated to the social media-based electronic bibliotherapy group or usual care group. Participants in the social media-based electronic bibliotherapy group received eight weekly e-bibliotherapy sessions. The control group only accepted the usual care provided by community services, but they received the same intervention materials as the intervention group after project completion. Mental health, caregiving appraisal, health-related quality of life, and psychological well-being were measured to test the intervention's effects immediately after completion. Individual interviews were conducted to explore caregivers' experiences participating in this study within two weeks after completing the intervention.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 60
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Hong Kong
  • Kowloon, Hong Kong
    • The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

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

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• caregivers providing regular care to individuals with mild to moderately severe dementia (Global Deterioration Scale=4~6 of any type), requiring at least five hours per week for a minimum duration of six months;
• aged 18 or above;
• not receiving payment for caregiving services rendered;
• assisting with at least one daily activity of the care recipient;
• possessing reading ability;
• utilized social media platforms such as WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and WeChat for over six months.

Exclusion Criteria:

• caregivers with unstable physical or mental conditions;
• caregivers unable to communicate logically;
• involvement in another interventional study

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Social media-based electronic bibliotherapy; Eight weekly sessions of social media-based electronic bibliotherapy	Other: Social media-based electronic bibliotherapy; Eight weekly sessions of bibliotherapy are delivered via their daily social media.
Other: Usual care; Routine services provided by community centers	Other: Usual care; The routine services provided by community centers

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Changes in mental health	Mental health will be measured with the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21. It is a 4-point Likert scale consisting of 21 items that measure levels ofdepression, anxiety, and stress in participants. Higher scores indicategreater severity of mental health problems.	Pre-intervention, post-intervention (i.e., within one week after completing the intervention)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Changes in health related quality of life	The health-related quality of life will be assessed using the 12-item Short Form Survey. It comprises two domains, namely the physical component summary and the mental component summary. Higher scores indicate better health-related quality of life.	Pre-intervention, post-intervention (i.e., within one week after completing the intervention)
Changes in caregiving appraisal	Caregiving appraisal will be assessed using the Caregiving Appraisal Scale. It is a 26-item Likert scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). Higher scores on this scale indicate more positive caregiving appraisal.	Pre-intervention, post-intervention (i.e., within one week after completing the intervention)
Changes in psychological wellbeing	The psychological well-being will be assessed using the shorter Chinese version of Ryff's psychological well-being scale. This scale is a Likert 6-point scale (1=strongly disagree, 6=strongly agree) comprising 18 items. Higher scores indicate greater levels of psychological well-being.	Pre-intervention, post-intervention (i.e., within one week after completing the intervention)

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Wang Shanshan, PhD, School of Nursing, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): July 1, 2022
• Primary Completion (Actual): December 31, 2023
• Study Completion (Actual): December 31, 2023

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: February 18, 2024
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 20, 2024
• First Posted (Actual): March 25, 2024

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): March 25, 2024
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 20, 2024
• Last Verified: February 1, 2024

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Mental Disorders; Brain Diseases; Central Nervous System Diseases; Nervous System Diseases; Neurocognitive Disorders; Dementia
• Other Study ID Numbers: P0038444

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