Understanding Reactions to Emotional Material in the Media During COVID-19

NCT04608097 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: 2020-03991
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 74
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

This feasibility study aims to adapt a protocol usually run in the laboratory in the Psychology Department for healthy participants (including the trauma film paradigm (James et al., 2016) and a simple cognitive task intervention) to remote (online) delivery. The motivation for this was restrictions to running in person laboratory experiments during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants will view film footage with COVID-19 related and potentially traumatic content (e.g. of seriously ill or dying patients in hospitals). Following film viewing, participants will be randomly allocated to either the experimental condition (simple cognitive task intervention, i.e. a memory cue followed by playing the computer game "Tetris" with mental rotation instructions) or the control condition (attention placebo, i.e., a memory cue followed by listening to a podcast for a similar duration). Any intrusive memories induced by the film (analogue trauma) will be monitored in a daily diary. It is predicted that the film (analogue trauma) will generate intrusive memories. If intrusive memories are generated, then it is predicted that participants in the experimental condition will report fewer intrusive memories related to the film (analogue trauma) during the following week than participants in the control condition. The development of this paradigm may inform the future development of a simple technique to prevent intrusive memories e.g. after repeated media consumption related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Conditions

Healthy Participants; Intrusive Memories

Keywords

Digital Intervention; Intrusive Memories; Trauma Film Paradigm; COVID-19

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Number of intrusive memories related to the trauma film

  Number of intrusive memories related to the trauma film recorded by participants in a brief diary daily for 7 days.

  Week 1

Secondary Outcomes (13)

• Characteristics of intrusive trauma memories related to the trauma film

  Week 1

• Intrusion questionnaire

  Week 1 follow-up

• Impact of Event Scale - Revised (IES-R): Degree of subjective distress of post-film intrusions

  Week 1 follow-up

• Self-rated functioning associated with intrusive memories

  Week 1 follow-up

• Self-rated concentration disruption associated with intrusive memories

  Week 1 follow-up

Other Outcomes (8)

• Number of unwanted/intrusive memories of COVID-19 media footage during the week before study participation

  Day 1

• Negative mood ratings

  Day 1 and Week 1 follow-up

• Post-trauma-film ratings

  Day 1

Study Arms (2)

Simple cognitive task intervention

EXPERIMENTAL

A memory cue followed by playing the computer game "Tetris" (on own smartphone) with mental rotation instructions for ca. 12 minutes.

Behavioral: Simple cognitive task intervention

Attention placebo

PLACEBO COMPARATOR

A memory cue followed by listening to a podcast (on own smartphone) for ca. 12 minutes.

Behavioral: Attention Placebo

Interventions

Simple cognitive task intervention BEHAVIORAL

A memory cue followed by playing the computer game "Tetris" (on own smartphone) with mental rotation instructions for ca. 12 minutes.

Simple cognitive task intervention

Attention Placebo BEHAVIORAL

A memory cue followed by listening to a podcast (on own smartphone) for ca. 12 minutes.

Attention placebo

Eligibility Criteria

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

You may qualify if:

• Aged 18-65
• Fluent in spoken and written Swedish
• Willing to watch a video containing emotional, distressing footage
• Have access to an internet enabled smartphone/computer

You may not qualify if:

• Have participated in a study in which similar stimuli were used
• Currently receiving treatment for a mental health problem (e.g. depression, anxiety, ADHD, addiction), including psychological therapy, counselling or medication
• Neurological illness (e.g., epilepsy)
• Planning to undertake a stress-inducing examination (e.g. university examination or driving test) during the week of study participation.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Uppsala University: lead

Study Sites (1)

Uppsala University

Uppsala, Sweden

Location

Related Publications (2)

• James EL, Lau-Zhu A, Clark IA, Visser RM, Hagenaars MA, Holmes EA. The trauma film paradigm as an experimental psychopathology model of psychological trauma: intrusive memories and beyond. Clin Psychol Rev. 2016 Jul;47:106-42. doi: 10.1016/j.cpr.2016.04.010. Epub 2016 Apr 21.

  PMID: 27289421 RESULT

• Singh L, Garate B, Hoppe JM, Holmes EA. Qualitative analysis of hotspots and intrusive memories after viewing an aversive film highlights their sensory and spatial features. Sci Rep. 2022 Apr 29;12(1):7049. doi: 10.1038/s41598-022-10579-0.

  PMID: 35487945 DERIVED

MeSH Terms

Conditions

COVID-19

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Pneumonia, Viral; Pneumonia; Respiratory Tract Infections; Infections; Virus Diseases; Coronavirus Infections; Coronaviridae Infections; Nidovirales Infections; RNA Virus Infections; Lung Diseases; Respiratory Tract Diseases

Study Officials

• Emily Holmes, Prof

  Uppsala University

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: DOUBLE
• Who Masked: PARTICIPANT, OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
• Purpose: BASIC SCIENCE
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Professor

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: October 28, 2020
• First Posted: October 29, 2020
• Study Start: October 28, 2020
• Primary Completion: March 12, 2021
• Study Completion: March 12, 2021
• Last Updated: April 30, 2021

Record last verified: 2021-04

Locations

SE (1)