Using Nudge Strategies to Promote Healthier Beverage Intake Among College Students
May 12, 2026 updated by: Yuan He, Nanjing Medical University
A Study on Nudge Interventions to Promote Changes in Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Consumption Behaviors Among College Students
The primary objective of this study was to examine whether four nudging strategies influence beverage consumption behavior among Chinese university students.
These interventions included sugar content information, health warning messages, hedonic labeling, and default option nudge.
A between-subjects experimental design with a single factor was employed to assess the effects of these strategies on students' choices between sugar-sweetened and sugar-free beverages, thereby evaluating their effectiveness in promoting healthier beverage selections.
Study Overview
Status
Completed
Conditions
Detailed Description
As the prevalence of overweight, obesity, and chronic diseases continues to escalate, excessive consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) has emerged as a growing public health concern globally.
One approach to reducing beverage intake while conserving resources is the utilization of nudge strategies.
Nudge strategies, characterized by their low cost and ease of implementation, facilitate individuals in making more accurate and beneficial choices in a predictable manner, through subtle interventions that do not prohibit any options or significantly alter incentives.
This nudge experiment will be conducted in a classroom setting, where participants will be randomly assigned to one of five groups for beverage selection, completing a menu-based choice task: a no-nudge control group, a default option group, a hedonic labeling group, a sugar content information group, and a health warning nudge group.
Study Type
Interventional
Enrollment (Actual)
1658
Phase
- Not Applicable
Contacts and Locations
This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.
Study Locations
-
-
Jiangsu
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Nanjing, Jiangsu, China, 210000
- Nanjing Medical University
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-
Participation Criteria
Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.
Eligibility Criteria
Ages Eligible for Study
- Child
- Adult
- Older Adult
Accepts Healthy Volunteers
Yes
Description
Inclusion Criteria:
- college students
- willing to participate
Exclusion Criteria:
- None
Study Plan
This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.
How is the study designed?
Design Details
- Primary Purpose: Prevention
- Allocation: Randomized
- Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
- Masking: None (Open Label)
Arms and Interventions
Participant Group / Arm |
Intervention / Treatment |
|---|---|
|
No Intervention: Control
In this group, no nudge interventions were implemented, only data were collected.
|
|
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Experimental: choice architecture (Sugar Content Information)
Students are exposed to information about the sugar content of sugar-sweetened beverages on the Questionnaire Star platform to "nudge" students towards healthier choices
|
Display the sugar content of the drink on the platform.
Showing the various harms that can come from long-term excessive consumption of sugary beverages on the platform.
The platform shows the hedonic information about sugar-free beverages.
The sugar-free option was preselected as the default.
|
|
Experimental: choice architecture (health warning Information)
The platform presented information outlining the potential health risks associated with excessive consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages.
|
Display the sugar content of the drink on the platform.
Showing the various harms that can come from long-term excessive consumption of sugary beverages on the platform.
The platform shows the hedonic information about sugar-free beverages.
The sugar-free option was preselected as the default.
|
|
Experimental: choice architecture (hedonic label Information)
Students are exposed to hedonic information about sugar-free beverages on the Wenjuanxing platform to "nudge" students towards healthier choices
|
Display the sugar content of the drink on the platform.
Showing the various harms that can come from long-term excessive consumption of sugary beverages on the platform.
The platform shows the hedonic information about sugar-free beverages.
The sugar-free option was preselected as the default.
|
|
Experimental: choice architecture (default option)
Setting sugar-free options as the default to "nudge" students towards healthier choices.
|
Display the sugar content of the drink on the platform.
Showing the various harms that can come from long-term excessive consumption of sugary beverages on the platform.
The platform shows the hedonic information about sugar-free beverages.
The sugar-free option was preselected as the default.
|
What is the study measuring?
Primary Outcome Measures
Outcome Measure |
Measure Description |
Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
|
The proportion (or likelihood) of selecting sugar-free beverages
Time Frame: day 1
|
The probability of choosing a sugar-free beverage (binary outcome: sugar-sweetened = 0, sugar-free = 1) across five menu-selection tasks.
|
day 1
|
Secondary Outcome Measures
Outcome Measure |
Measure Description |
Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
|
Participants' Perceived Intrusiveness of Nudges
Time Frame: day 1
|
A 5-point Likert scale (1 = strongly disagree, 5 = strongly agree) was employed.
Higher scores indicate greater perceived intrusiveness.
|
day 1
|
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Participants' Support for Nudges
Time Frame: day 1
|
A 5-point Likert scale (1 = strongly disagree, 5 = strongly agree) was employed.
Higher scores indicate greater support for the nudging strategy
|
day 1
|
|
Participants' Perceived effectiveness of Nudges
Time Frame: day 1
|
A 5-point Likert scale (1 = strongly disagree, 5 = strongly agree) was employed.
Higher scores indicate greater perceived effectiveness.
|
day 1
|
Collaborators and Investigators
This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.
Sponsor
Study record dates
These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.
Study Major Dates
Study Start (Actual)
January 1, 2026
Primary Completion (Actual)
May 9, 2026
Study Completion (Actual)
May 9, 2026
Study Registration Dates
First Submitted
September 11, 2024
First Submitted That Met QC Criteria
September 14, 2024
First Posted (Actual)
September 19, 2024
Study Record Updates
Last Update Posted (Actual)
May 13, 2026
Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria
May 12, 2026
Last Verified
May 1, 2026
More Information
Terms related to this study
Additional Relevant MeSH Terms
Other Study ID Numbers
- 2023-SR-052
Drug and device information, study documents
Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product
No
Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product
No
product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.
No
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