Promoting Infant-Directed Speech in Ghana

NCT04807907 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: STU00213766
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 2,800
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The study is a randomized evaluation of a low-cost intervention that encourages mothers and other caregivers to talk to infants, or to engage in what is known as infant-directed speech (IDS) as a way of promoting language and brain development in Tamale and surrounding areas, Ghana.

Conditions

Infant Development

Keywords

infant directed speech

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (4)

• Adult word count

  Number of words spoken to child

  10 hours

• Number of conversational turns

  Number of back-and-forth alternations between a child and an adult during conversation

  10 hours

• Self-reported parental beliefs about the value of IDS (Index)

  Questionnaire about at what age the participant believes parents should begin speaking, singing, telling stories, etc. to their child using regular speech (i.e. real words, full sentences). Answers will be used to construct an index.

  10 hours

• Self-reported parental IDS behavior (Index)

  Questionnaire about whether the participant uses infant directed speech, and if so, the frequency of this behavior. Answers will be used to construct an index.

  10 hours

Study Arms (2)

Infant Directed Speech (IDS) Video + IDS Calendar

EXPERIMENTAL

The participant will be shown a 3-minute video describing the value of IDS and how the participant can use IDS with their child. The participant will receive an IDS-themed wall calendar.

Behavioral: Infant Directed Speech (IDS) Video + IDS Wall Calendar

Control

NO INTERVENTION

No intervention. The participant will receive a regular wall calendar with an image of Stanford.

Interventions

Infant Directed Speech (IDS) Video + IDS Wall Calendar BEHAVIORAL

IDS Video: The IDS video was developed by the research team. It is a simple animation with a voiceover describing the value of IDS and encouraging the viewer to speak to her babies and to tell family members to do so as well. The video has been translated into Dagbani and English (viewers select the language). They may choose to watch it twice. Breastfeeding women are told by the surveyor following the video, "For instance, you could talk to your baby in full sentences when your baby is breastfeeding." Wall Calendar: The calendar contains images from the video of parents practicing IDS, and key facts about IDS in bullet points. The 12-month calendar contains an empty star next to each week that the respondent can fill in if they perform IDS at least once a day in that week. The calendar also provides a link to a Facebook page where the respondents can re-watch the video or show it to others (https://www.facebook.com/ghanababytalk/videos).

Infant Directed Speech (IDS) Video + IDS Calendar

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 40 Years
• Gender Eligibility Details: adult women and infants they are the primary caregiver for.
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• Adult women who visit government health facilities/outreach posts for antenatal, postnatal, or child welfare clinic visits in Tamale and surrounding areas, Ghana.
• Must be age 18 to 40 years old
• Be either pregnant or mothers of young infants at the time of baseline.
• Must speak English or Dagbani (a language local to Tamale and the surrounding areas)
• The endline survey will also include child participants.
• Must be the biological children (or wards) of the baseline respondents
• Must be age 2-18 months old during the endline period

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Northwestern University: lead
• Stanford University: collaborator

Study Sites (1)

Northwestern University

Evanston, Illinois, 60208, United States

Location

MeSH Terms

Interventions

Videotape Recording

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Tape Recording; Audiovisual Aids; Educational Technology; Technology; Technology, Industry, and Agriculture; Television

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: OTHER
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Model Details: The treatment groups are randomly assigned, as follows: * Infant Directed Speech (IDS) Video (Treatment; 50%): The participant will be shown a 3-minute video describing the value of IDS and how the participant can use IDS with their child. The participant will receive an IDS-themed wall calendar. * Control (50%): No intervention. The participant will receive a regular wall calendar.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: March 12, 2021
• First Posted: March 19, 2021
• Study Start: March 2, 2021
• Primary Completion: December 7, 2021
• Study Completion: June 1, 2024
• Last Updated: July 24, 2024

Record last verified: 2024-07

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

US (1)