Social Media Influences on Engagement and Susceptibility to Non-combustible Tobacco Product Use Among Youth and Young Adults (AYA) (USC TCORS P4)

NCT07849790 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: UP-23-00724B
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 2,829
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to present images featuring varies alternative nicotine and nicotine-like vaping products to assess adolescents' and young adults' harm and appeal perceptions of, and susceptibility to use these products, as well as to assess whether these perceptions and susceptibility are moderated by participants' age, sex at birth, race and ethnicity, nicotine and non-nicotine current use, and exposure to nicotine and tobacco product content on social media.

Conditions

Alternative Nicotine and Nicotine-like Vaping Products

Keywords

nicotine, nicotine analogues, nicotine-free, tobacco-free, social media

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (9)

• Harm perceptions of vaping to one's own health

  How harmful do you think vaping this product is to your health? assessed on a 5-point ordinal scale (1 = Not at all harmful; 5= extremely harmful)

  Assessed 3 times immediately after each of the 3 images during the 5-minute-long online survey-based experiment

• Harm perceptions of vaping to others' health

  and How harmful do you think vaping this product is to others' health? assessed on a 5-point ordinal scale (1 = Not at all harmful; 5= extremely harmful)

  Assessed 3 times immediately after each of the 3 images during the 5-minute-long online survey-based experiment

• Appeal perceptions of vaping

  Vaping this product is: not cool/cool, assessed with 7-point semantic differential scales.

  Assessed 3 times immediately after each of the 3 images during the 5-minute-long online survey-based experiment

• Appeal perceptions of vaping

  Vaping this product is: not fun/fun, assessed with the 7-point semantic differential scales

  Assessed 3 times immediately after each of the 3 images during the 5-minute-long online survey-based experiment

• Appeal perceptions of vaping

  Vaping this product is: unattractive/attractive, assessed with 7-point semantic differential scales

  Assessed 3 times immediately after each of the 3 images during the 5-minute-long online survey-based experiment

• Susceptibility to vaping product use

  If one of your best friends offered you this vape device, would you vape it?, assessed with a 4-point scale "definitely not," "probably not," "probably yes," "definitely yes"

  Assessed 3 times immediately after each of the 3 images during the 5-minute-long online survey-based experiment

• Susceptibility to vaping product use

  Do you think you might use a vape device like this in the next year?, assessed with a 4-point scale "definitely not," "probably not," "probably yes," "definitely yes"

  Assessed 3 times immediately after each of the 3 images during the 5-minute-long online survey-based experiment

• Susceptibility to vaping product use

  Do you think you might use a vape device like this soon?, assessed with a 4-point scale "definitely not," "probably not," "probably yes," "definitely yes"

  Assessed 3 times immediately after each of the 3 images during the 5-minute-long online survey-based experiment

• Susceptibility to vaping product use

  Are you curious about vaping this device?, assessed with a 4-point scale "definitely not," "probably not," "probably yes," "definitely yes"

  Assessed 3 times immediately after each of the 3 images during the 5-minute-long online survey-based experiment

Study Arms (4)

an image depicting a tobacco nicotine vaping device

ACTIVE COMPARATOR

an image resembling a social media post

Behavioral: An image resembling a social media post

an image depicting a zero-nicotine vaping device

EXPERIMENTAL

an image resembling a social media post

Behavioral: An image resembling a social media post

an image depicting an ambiguous ("clean"/"pure") nicotine va

EXPERIMENTAL

an image resembling a social media post

Behavioral: An image resembling a social media post

an image depicting a synthetic/tobacco-free nicotine vaping

EXPERIMENTAL

an image resembling a social media post

Behavioral: An image resembling a social media post

Interventions

An image resembling a social media post BEHAVIORAL

The images varied by 4 conditions, to which participants were randomly assigned. Each participant viewed three images of flavored disposable vaping products presented in random order in one of the following four randomly assigned conditions: synthetic/tobacco-free nicotine, zero-nicotine, ambiguous nicotine ("clean"/ "pure"), or tobacco nicotine (control).

an image depicting a synthetic/tobacco-free nicotine vaping; an image depicting a tobacco nicotine vaping device; an image depicting a zero-nicotine vaping device; an image depicting an ambiguous ("clean"/"pure") nicotine va

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 14 Years - 25 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Child (0-17), Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• being able to complete the online survey in english
• provides parental consent and youth assent or adult consent

You may not qualify if:

• younger than 14 or older than 25
• no parental consent and youth assent or adult consent

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of Southern California: lead

Study Sites (1)

University of Southern California

Los Angeles, California, 90032, United States

Location

Related Links

• We will upload the anonymized survey data to an NIH-approved repository after the completion of data analysis of the study.

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: BASIC SCIENCE
• Intervention Model: FACTORIAL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Professor

Model Details: Each participant viewed three images of flavored disposable vaping products in one of four conditions: synthetic/tobacco-free nicotine, zero-nicotine, ambiguous nicotine ("clean"/ "pure"), or tobacco nicotine (control). After each image harm and appeal perceptions, and susceptibility/intention to use these products, were assessed. While arm and appeal perceptions were assessed among all participants, susceptibility/intention to use these products was assessed among never-users of nicotine and no-nicotine e-cigarettes.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: September 24, 2026
• First Posted: September 30, 2026
• Study Start: August 20, 2025
• Primary Completion: August 31, 2025
• Study Completion: August 31, 2025
• Last Updated: September 30, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-09

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

US (1)