Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2014 Mar 21;16(3):e82.
doi: 10.2196/jmir.2469.

Efficacy of a Web-based computer-tailored smoking prevention intervention for Dutch adolescents: randomized controlled trial

Sanne de Josselin de Jong  1 , Math Candel, Dewi Segaar, Henricus-Paul Cremers, Hein de Vries
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Efficacy of a Web-based computer-tailored smoking prevention intervention for Dutch adolescents: randomized controlled trial

Sanne de Josselin de Jong et al. J Med Internet Res. .

Abstract

Background: Preventing smoking initiation among adolescents is crucial to reducing tobacco-caused death and disease. This study focuses on the effectiveness of a Web-based computer-tailored smoking prevention intervention aimed at adolescents.

Objective: The intent of the study was to describe the intervention characteristics and to show the effectiveness and results of a randomized controlled trial. We hypothesized that the intervention would prevent smoking initiation among Dutch secondary school students aged 10-20 years and would have the largest smoking prevention effect among the age cohort of 14-16 years, as smoking uptake in that period is highest.

Methods: The intervention consisted of a questionnaire and fully automated computer-tailored feedback on intention to start smoking and motivational determinants. A total of 89 secondary schools were recruited via postal mail and randomized into either the computer-tailored intervention condition or the control condition. Participants had to complete a Web-based questionnaire at baseline and at 6-month follow-up. Data on smoking initiation were collected from 897 students from these schools. To identify intervention effects, multilevel logistic regression analyses were conducted using multiple imputation.

Results: Smoking initiation among students aged 10-20 years was borderline significantly lower in the experimental condition as compared to the control condition 6 months after baseline (OR 0.25, 95% CI 0.05-1.21, P=.09). Additional analyses of the data for the 14-16 year age group showed a significant effect, with 11.5% (24/209) of the students in the control condition reporting initiation compared to 5.7% (10/176) in the experimental condition (OR 0.22, 95% CI 0.05-1.02, P=.05). No moderation effects were found regarding gender and educational level.

Conclusions: The findings of this study suggest that computer-tailored smoking prevention programs are a promising way of preventing smoking initiation among adolescents for at least 6 months, in particular among the age cohort of 14-16 years. Further research is needed to focus on long-term effects.

Trial registration: International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number (ISRCTN): 77864351; http://www.controlled-trials.com/ISRCTN77864351 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6BSLKSTm5).

Keywords: Internet; Web-based intervention; adolescents; computer tailoring; randomized controlled trial; smoking initiation; smoking prevention.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of Interest: Hein de Vries is scientific director of Vision2Health, a company that licenses evidence-based innovative computer-tailored health communication tools.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The I-Change Model [38,39].
Figure 2
Figure 2
Participant flow chart.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Preventing tobacco use among youth and young adults: a report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Office on Smoking and Health; 2012. [2014-03-04]. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK99237/pdf/TOC.pdf. - PubMed
    1. World Health Organization The Tobacco Atlas. 2002. http://www.who.int/tobacco/en/atlas7.pdf.
    1. Steinberg L. A Social Neuroscience Perspective on Adolescent Risk-Taking. Dev Rev. 2008 Mar;28(1):78–106. doi: 10.1016/j.dr.2007.08.002. http://europepmc.org/abstract/MED/18509515 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Elders MJ, Perry CL, Eriksen MP, Giovino GA. The report of the Surgeon General: preventing tobacco use among young people. Am J Public Health. 1994 Apr;84(4):543–7. - PMC - PubMed
    1. DiFranza JR, Rigotti NA, McNeill AD, Ockene JK, Savageau JA, St Cyr D, Coleman M. Initial symptoms of nicotine dependence in adolescents. Tob Control. 2000 Sep;9(3):313–9. http://tobaccocontrol.bmj.com/cgi/pmidlookup?view=long&pmid=10982576 - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

Associated data

LinkOut - more resources