Behavioral Economics Field Experiment in HIV Testing

NCT03224741 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: HIRB00004772
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 7,720
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The investigators propose to conduct a randomized controlled trial in collaboration with the Fundacion Raices, a non-governmental organization (NGO) with strong ties to the local community of Esmeraldas, Ecuador. A total of about 3,000 subjects will be involved in the full-scale study over the course of 2 years. In partnership with the Fundacion Raices, the research team will set up stands at four public places in the city of Esmeraldas: the "malecon" (esplanade on the town's waterfront), the "Centro Comercial Multiplaza" (Esmeraldas' large shopping mall), the municipal market (a popular destination for groceries, etc.), and a public park located in the city center. Each stand will feature a sign inviting individuals to stop and "get their health checked", and will provide free refreshments (juice boxes and water). A monitor will approach individuals at the malecon/shopping center/municipal market/public park and ask whether they are interested to learn about a health initiative by the Fundacion Raices and a group of public health researchers. If an individual is interested, the monitor will begin the three steps of the experiment:

1. 1.Participants fill out a brief, anonymous survey with demographics, socio- economic characteristics, and whether they have been tested for HIV/AIDS in the past.
2. 2.Participants receive the script and actions associated with the experimental condition into which they are assigned to according to the randomization table.
3. 3.Whether participants subsequently showed up at a medical facility to get tested for HIV/AIDS is noted in the record.

Conditions

HIV/AIDS Serodiagnosis

Keywords

Behavioral Economics

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Proportion of participants in each experimental condition that showed up for the HIV sero test.

  The outcome measure is a relative proportion of participants in each experimental condition that showed up at the 'Microlab - Laboratiorio Clinico Bacteriologico' to provide a blood sample for the HIV sero test. It is calculated as the number of tested participants divided by the total number of participants enrolled into each experimental condition. An enrolled participant is defined as an individual that received the information and instructions in T1, T2 and T3.

  2 weeks

Study Arms (3)

Information

PLACEBO COMPARATOR

Behavioral: Information

Active Choice

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

Behavioral: Active Choice

Monetary incentive

EXPERIMENTAL

Behavioral: Monetary Incentive

Interventions

Monetary Incentive BEHAVIORAL

Subjects in this condition will be read a script informing them of the benefits and importance of routine HIV/AIDS testing for themselves, the benefits for one's partner and loved ones, and for the broader community; they are also given a flyer including the same information.Iin addition, they will be told that if they will get tested for HIV/AIDS within the next two weeks, they will receive $10 (the US dollar became Ecuador's official currency in 2001).

Monetary incentive

Information BEHAVIORAL

Subjects assigned to this condition are read a script informing them of the benefits and importance of routine HIV/AIDS testing for themselves, the benefits for one's partner and loved ones, and for the broader community; they are also given a flyer including the same information. Then, they are invited to get tested in the next two weeks.

Information

Active Choice BEHAVIORAL

Subjects in this condition will receive the same information and flyer as in T1; in addition, they are told that they have the opportunity to express their intention to get tested for HIV/AIDS. To this aim, they will be given a sheet of paper and asked to tick one of two boxes. The first box will say "I intend to get tested within the next two weeks", and the second will say "I will consider getting tested within the next two weeks but I am not ready to commit at this time". They will also be asked to write their initials at the bottom of the sheet, and will be told to keep it. This is a form of "soft commitment" which has proven effective in other contexts (Bryan et al. 2010).

Active Choice

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• All participants able to understand the instructions and provide consent

You may not qualify if:

• Under 18 years of age (age of consent)

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Johns Hopkins University: lead
• Universidad San Francisco de Quito: collaborator
• University of South Florida: collaborator

Study Sites (1)

Universidad San Francisco de Quito

Quito, Ecuador

Location

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: SINGLE
• Who Masked: PARTICIPANT
• Masking Details: The subject receives the script and actions associated with the experimental condition she/he is assigned to according to the randomization. The subject receives a card consisting of three detachable parts. Each part includes a numerical ID that uniquely identifies each participant. The first part of the card will remain with the researchers. The second part of the card does to the medical personnel at the health facility if and when they go there to get tested. The third part of the card will remain with the participant. This procedure and the study ID will enable the research team to (a) associate participants to the treatment conditions and (b) determine the outcomes (whether they got tested or not, and what the results were), while preserving the anonymity of the participants.
• Purpose: SCREENING
• Intervention Model: FACTORIAL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Model Details: Randomized Control Trial

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: July 18, 2017
• First Posted: July 21, 2017
• Study Start: June 12, 2017
• Primary Completion: January 1, 2019
• Study Completion: January 1, 2019
• Last Updated: February 4, 2019

Record last verified: 2019-02

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

EC (1)