Digital Privacy Awareness in Gifted Students

February 21, 2026 updated by: Fatma Ulku Genc, Giresun University

Gifted/Talented Students' Digital Privacy Perceptions And Concerns In The Context Of Their Digital Literacy: A Randomized Controlled Trial

This randomized controlled trial aims to examine gifted and talented students' perceptions and concerns regarding digital privacy within the context of their digital literacy. The study evaluates the effectiveness of a structured digital privacy education intervention designed to increase awareness and informed decision-making in digital environments. Gifted students are randomly assigned to an intervention group or a control group receiving standard practice. Data are collected using validated measures of digital privacy perception, digital literacy, and privacy-related concerns. The findings are expected to contribute to the development of evidence-based digital literacy and privacy education practices for gifted learners.

Study Overview

Status

Recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

This randomized controlled trial investigates the effects of a structured digital literacy and digital privacy education program on gifted and talented high school students' digital literacy levels, digital privacy perceptions, and digital privacy concerns. The study is grounded in the increasing integration of digital technologies into adolescents' daily and educational lives and the growing importance of protecting personal data and privacy in digital environments, particularly for gifted students who demonstrate high levels of digital engagement.

The study population consists of gifted and talented students enrolled in grades 9 through 12 who are identified as gifted and receiving education in Science and Art Centers (BİLSEM). Participants are randomly assigned to either an intervention group or a control group. The intervention group receives a structured digital literacy and digital privacy education program designed to enhance awareness of digital rights, online privacy risks, personal data protection, digital footprints, and responsible digital behavior. The control group continues with standard educational practices without additional intervention.

The study follows a randomized controlled design with pre-test, post-test, and follow-up assessments to examine both immediate and sustained effects of the intervention. Data are collected using validated self-report instruments measuring digital literacy, digital privacy perception, and digital privacy-related concerns. Sociodemographic variables are also collected to examine potential differences across participant characteristics.

The primary objective of the study is to determine whether participation in the digital literacy and digital privacy education program leads to significant improvements in digital literacy and digital privacy perception and reductions in digital privacy concerns compared to the control group. Secondary objectives include examining whether digital literacy and digital privacy perception predict digital privacy concerns and assessing changes in outcomes over time.

The findings of this study are expected to contribute to the evidence base on digital literacy and digital privacy education for gifted adolescents and to inform the development of educational interventions and policies aimed at supporting safe, informed, and rights-based digital participation among gifted learners.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

128

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 Contact

Study Locations

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

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Identified as a gifted or talented student and enrolled in a Science and Art Center (BİLSEM).
  • Currently enrolled in grades 9 through 12.
  • Aged between 14 and 18 years.
  • Actively using digital devices and online platforms.
  • Willing to participate voluntarily in the study.
  • Informed consent obtained from the participant and, where required, from a parent or legal guardian.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Not identified as a gifted or talented student.
  • Not enrolled in a Science and Art Center (BİLSEM).
  • Outside the specified age range.
  • Inability to participate in the educational sessions or complete the assessment instruments.
  • Withdrawal of consent at any stage of the study.

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: Other
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Intervention Group
Participants receive a structured digital literacy and digital privacy education program.
Behavioral: Digital Literacy and Digital Privacy Education Program
This intervention consists of a structured digital literacy and digital privacy education program designed for gifted and talented students. The program focuses on increasing students' awareness of digital privacy, personal data protection, digital footprints, online risks, and responsible digital behavior. The intervention is delivered through interactive educational sessions using age-appropriate instructional materials, real-life digital scenarios, guided discussions, and reflective activities. Educational content and activities are implemented by drawing on relevant digital literacy and online safety materials prepared by the Ministry of National Education, adapted for use within the scope of the intervention. The program is implemented over a defined period and aims to enhance informed decision-making and safe participation in digital environments.
No Intervention: Control Group
Participants receive standard educational practice without additional digital privacy intervention.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Digital Privacy Perception
Time Frame: Baseline and 3 months follow-up
Online privacy awareness is assessed using the Online Privacy Awareness Scale (Çevrimiçi Mahremiyet Farkındalık Ölçeği; ÇMFÖ), a validated self-report instrument. Total scores range from 17 to 85; higher scores indicate higher online privacy awareness.
Baseline and 3 months follow-up

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Digital Privacy Concern
Time Frame: Baseline and 3 months follow-up
Digital privacy concern is assessed using the Online Privacy Concern Scale (Çevrimiçi Mahremiyet Kaygısı Ölçeği; ÇMKÖ), a validated self-report instrument. Total scores range from 14 to 70; higher scores indicate greater digital privacy concern.
Baseline and 3 months follow-up
Digital Literacy
Time Frame: Baseline and 3 months follow-up
Digital literacy is assessed using the Digital Literacy Scale (Dijital Okuryazarlık Ölçeği; DOÖ), a validated self-report instrument. Total scores range from 10 to 50; higher scores indicate higher digital literacy.
Baseline and 3 months follow-up

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Giresun University

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

  • Nissenbaum, H. (2020). Privacy in context: Technology, policy, and the integrity of social life. Stanford University Press.
  • OECD. (2020). Children in the digital environment: Revised typology of risks. OECD Publishing.
  • Özkes, D. K. (2023). Sosyal Medya Uygulamalarında Dijital Mahremiyet Farkındalığının Ölçülmesi. Yüksek Lisans Tezi. Çorum Hitit Üniversitesi.
  • Robinson, L.K., Brown, A.H. & Green, T.D. (2010) Security vs. Access: Balancing safety and productivity in the digital school. Eugene, Oregon: International Society for Technology in Education.
  • Saleem, T. A. (2018). Digital citizenship and its activation means in educational ınstitutions. In International Forum of Teaching and Studies. 14, 2, pp. 39-53.

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)

September 15, 2024

Primary Completion (Estimated)

March 1, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

April 1, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

January 22, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

February 21, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

February 25, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

February 25, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

February 21, 2026

Last Verified

February 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Other Study ID Numbers

  • E-50288587-050.01.04-15679

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

Individual participant data will not be shared.

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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