Text Messaging Intervention on Happy Family Meal for Improving Family Communication and Well-being in Hong Kong Adults

NCT06747780 | Not Yet Recruiting DMC

• 1 other identifier: JCSFLP2-TMI
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 1,050
• Locations: 0 countries
• Sites: N/A

Brief Summary

Family meals are crucial for family communication and well-being. This text messaging intervention digitalizes Happy Family Kitchen II, a face-to-face community-based intervention previously shown to be effective. This is a two-arm, parallel-group, randomized controlled trial (RCT) designed to evaluate the effectiveness of a text messaging intervention aimed at promoting happy family meals among Hong Kong adults. Eligible participants are Hong Kong residents aged 18 or older, with at least one parent or child also aged 18 or older, who can read Chinese and have access to Short Message Service (SMS) and Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) platforms. A target of approximately 1,050 participants will be stratified by four types of family roles and negative emotional eating status and randomized to either the intervention group, receiving a digital booklet, text messages for two weeks, and two family-based activity boosters, or the waitlist control group. The content is based on five positive psychology themes: joy, gratitude, flow, savoring, and listening. Primary outcomes include improvement in family communication and well-being at three months post-intervention. This study aims to assess the effectiveness of a digital intervention on family communication and well-being through the promotion of happy family meals. By leveraging information communication technologies (ICTs), this intervention offers a scalable and cost-effective approach, providing insights into the feasibility and effectiveness of digitizing community-based interventions.

Conditions

N/A - Healthy Subjects

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (2)

• Changes in family communication

  Family communication will be assessed using the 10-item Family Communication Scale, which measures satisfaction with family communication, listening skills, expression of affection, and problem-solving abilities. Responses are scored on a five-point scale from 1 to 5, with total score ranging from 10 to 50 and higher scores indicating better communication.

  Baseline, 3-month post-intervention

• Changes in family well-being

  Family well-being will be measured using three separate questions: "Do you think your family is harmonious/happy/healthy?", each asking respondents to rate their family health, happiness, or harmony on a scale from 0 to 10, with higher scores indicating better outcomes.

  Baseline, 3-month post-intervention

Secondary Outcomes (12)

• Changes in family communication

  Baseline, 1-month post-intervention

• Changes in family well-being

  Baseline, 1-month post-intervention

• Changes in family meal behavioral outcomes

  Baseline, 1-month post-intervention and 3-month post-intervention

• Changes in symptoms of anxiety and depression

  Baseline, 1-month post-intervention and 3-month post-intervention

• Changes in personal happiness

  Baseline, 1-month post-intervention and 3-month post-intervention

Study Arms (2)

Intervention group

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants and their eligible family members in the intervention group will receive a digital booklet via MMS and daily text messages related to happy family meals via SMS for two weeks. The content of these messages will be based on five positive psychology themes: joy, gratitude, flow, savoring, and listening, adapted from the Happy Family Kitchen II project. Participants in the intervention group will receive notifications prompting them to join two family-based activities, adapted from the Happy Family Kitchen II project, as boosters at one-month and three-month after they receive the daily SMS, respectively.

Behavioral: Text messaging

Waitlist control group

OTHER

Participants in the waitlist control group will not receive the intervention immediately but will be offered the same 14-day SMS intervention and two family-based activities three months post-intervention.

Behavioral: Control (Usual care)

Interventions

Text messaging BEHAVIORAL

A digital booklet, text messages for two weeks, and two family-based activity boosters

Intervention group

Control (Usual care) BEHAVIORAL

Control only

Waitlist control group

Eligibility Criteria

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

You may qualify if:

• are Hong Kong adults aged 18+ years who have at least one parent or children (aged 18+ years) other than their spouse in the family,
• can read Chinese,
• have access to SMS/MMS platform, and
• give informed consent (team leaders only).

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Dr. Wang Man-Ping: lead
• The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust: collaborator

Central Study Contacts

Man Ping Wang, PhD

CONTACT

(852) 39176636; mpwang@hku.hk

Ka Lai Pang

CONTACT

(852) 39103122; aklpang@hku.hk

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: SINGLE
• Who Masked: PARTICIPANT
• Purpose: PREVENTION
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Prof

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: December 12, 2024
• First Posted: December 24, 2024
• Study Start: December 31, 2024
• Primary Completion: May 1, 2025
• Study Completion: September 30, 2025
• Last Updated: December 31, 2024

Record last verified: 2024-12

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share