Psychology Mobile Apps for Parents in a Pandemic

NCT04980365 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: IRB-2020-230
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 224
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to determine whether parents of young children (aged 10 and under) think it is feasible (in other words, doable) and acceptable (in other words, satisfactory) to use a mobile app designed to provide personalized education and enrichment for 10 minutes/day for 14 days. The investigators hope to learn if it is reasonable to ask parents to use one of three different apps and if parents are satisfied with their participation in the study. If so, the investigators can continue to study the effect of these apps on parents' stress in future research. The investigators also plan to evaluate the effect of these app-based interventions in lowering levels of stress in parents during the COVID-19 pandemic. By conducting this study, the investigators hope to learn if there are specific app-based interventions that will lead to a reduction in stress in parents, improved parental life satisfaction, and improved parent-child interactions. If the results of this study suggest these apps may be promising at reducing stress among parents, the investigators will continue doing research on these app-based interventions.

Conditions

Stress, Psychological

Keywords

Parental stress; Health Psychology; Mental health apps; Mindfulness; Gratitude

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Parental Stress Scale Total Score

  Parental stress will be measured with The Parental Stress Scale, an 18-item self report scale; scores range from 18-90.

  T1 (before intervention); T2 (immediately after intervention); T3 (1-month after intervention)

Secondary Outcomes (7)

• Five Facet Questionnaire: Short Form Total Score

  T1 (before intervention); T2 (immediately after intervention); T3 (1-month after intervention)

• Gratitude Questionnaire-6 Total Score

  T1 (before intervention); T2 (immediately after intervention); T3 (1-month after intervention)

• Gratitude Resentment and Appreciation Test-Revised Short Form Total Score

  T1 (before intervention); T2 (immediately after intervention); T3 (1-month after intervention)

• Dyadic Adjustment Scale Total Score

  T1 (before intervention); T2 (immediately after intervention); T3 (1-month after intervention)

• Positive & Negative Affect Scores

  T1 (before intervention); T2 (immediately after intervention); T3 (1-month after intervention)

Study Arms (3)

Mindfulness

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants will be asked to use the app Mindfulness Coach 10 minutes for 14 days.

Behavioral: Mindfulness

Gratitude

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants will be asked to use the app Grateful 10 minutes for 14 days.

Behavioral: Gratitude

Control

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

Participants will be asked to use the app Day One daily for 10 minutes. Participants will be writing a daily journal entry describing what they ate during the previous day for 14 days.

Behavioral: Food Journal

Interventions

Mindfulness BEHAVIORAL

Participants will be asked to use the app Mindfulness Coach daily for 10 minutes. Participants will follow app instructions for brief guided meditation sessions for 14 days.

Mindfulness

Gratitude BEHAVIORAL

Participants will be asked to use the app Grateful daily for 10 minutes. Participants will follow app instructions and will be answering to prompts related to gratitude provided by the app daily, for 10 minutes for 14 days.

Gratitude

Food Journal BEHAVIORAL

Participants will be asked to use the app Day One daily for 10 minutes. Participants will be writing a daily journal entry describing what they ate during the previous day for 14 days.

Control

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Only individuals aged 18 and older will be allowed to participate in the current research (assessed by participant self-report).
• Individuals must identify oneself as a parent or primary caregiver of a child/children aged 10 or under (assessed by participant self-report).
• Participants who score 30 or higher in the Parent Stress Scale (PSS) measure.
• Participants who reside in the U.S. and can understand and answer surveys in English.

You may not qualify if:

• Individuals under 18
• Non-English-speaking individuals
• Individuals who do not consent to the survey.
• Individuals who do not identify oneself as a parent or primary caregiver of a child/children under the age of 10 (assessed by participant self-report).
• Individuals who score 30 or lower in the PSS measure.
• Individuals who do not reside in the U.S.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Sam Houston State University: lead

Study Sites (1)

Sam Houston State University

Huntsville, Texas, 77341, United States

Location

Related Publications (1)

• Ratcliff CG, Langley HA, Torres D, Anderson KS. Randomized controlled trial of brief app-based gratitude and mindfulness interventions for parents of young children. J Fam Psychol. 2025 Sep;39(6):848-860. doi: 10.1037/fam0001347. Epub 2025 Jun 9.

  PMID: 40489175 DERIVED

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Stress, Psychological

Interventions

Mindfulness

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Behavioral Symptoms; Behavior

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; Behavior Therapy; Psychotherapy; Behavioral Disciplines and Activities

Study Officials

• Chelsea G Ratcliff, Ph.D.

  Sam Houston State University

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: SINGLE
• Who Masked: PARTICIPANT
• Masking Details: Participants will have knowledge of the intervention they will receive but will have no knowledge of the other interventions used in the study.
• Purpose: SUPPORTIVE CARE
• Intervention Model: FACTORIAL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Assistant Professor

Model Details: Potential participants will be provided access to an informed consent form and baseline survey via Qualtrics. After baseline is completed and eligibility confirmed, the study coordinator will randomly assign the participant to one of three app-based intervention conditions: Gratitude, Mindfulness, or control group. Next, the study coordinator will email them to schedule a Zoom meeting. The meeting will last 15 minutes and participants will be informed of what app they will use. After a 14-day period, the study coordinator will send participants a follow-up survey, and a final follow-up Qualtrics survey one month after the intervention ends. Participants will receive $5 for completing the baseline questionnaire, $5 for the immediate post-survey, and $10 for the one-month follow-up survey (participants can receive up to $20). Participants recruited via PeRP will receive one credit for completing the baseline questionnaire, two for the post-survey, and one for the follow-up.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: July 19, 2021
• First Posted: July 28, 2021
• Study Start: June 8, 2021
• Primary Completion: June 30, 2022
• Study Completion: June 30, 2022
• Last Updated: October 27, 2022

Record last verified: 2022-10

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

US (1)