TECH App Marijuana Use Intervention for Court-Involved Adolescents

Cannabis Use Clinical Trial

— TECH  

Official title:

Development and Preliminary Testing of an Adjunct Smartphone App to Reduce Marijuana Use in Court-Involved, Non-Incarcerated Adolescents

Clinical Trial Details — Status: Recruiting

Administrative data

• NCT number: NCT05979272
• Other study ID #: SP0078326
• Secondary ID: K23DA048062
• Status: Recruiting
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: June 21, 2023
• Est. completion date: March 2025

Study information

• Verified date: August 2023
• Source: Northwestern University
• Contact: n/a
• Is FDA regulated: No
• Study type: Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

The study is about helping teens who are involved in the court system to cut down or quit using marijuana. Teens may be asked to test out an experimental smartphone app, called TECH, that will be used only by teens in this study. This app is a private online community where teens can work towards changing their substance use and other behavior with the help of other anonymous teens. We will use this information to learn how the app may help teens make a change and to improve the TECH app.

Description:

This multiphase study will establish the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of a novel smartphone app that leverages both intrapersonal and interpersonal mechanisms to promote cannabis-related behavior change among CINI youth ages 14-17. The app, Teen Empowerment through Computerized Health (TECH), will be evaluated as an adjunct to treatment as usual (TAU) at the local family court. Phase 1 (completed Fall 2021) included a series of semi-structured interviews with key individuals, to inform how clinical goals (e.g., reduced cannabis use) will map onto usage goals (e.g., goal-setting, peer networking), features (e.g., expert-moderated forum, notifications) and workflow. Then, Phase 2 (completed Fall 2022) beta tested and iteratively refined the TECH prototype with 10 court-involved, non-incarcerated (CINI) youth. In the current phase of the work, Phase 3, we will conduct a pilot randomized control trial (RCT) with 60 CINI youth to test the TECH app (TAU+TECH) relative to TAU-only.

Specific aims are:

Aim 1. Apply the Behavior Intervention Theory model to develop a user-driven tool (i.e., TECH) that capitalizes on how, why, and when CINI youth would most prefer to engage with a smartphone app to reduce cannabis use.

~Aim 1 was achieved in Phase 1 qualitative interviews with CINI youth, their parents, and behavioral health app developers.

Aim 2. Examine the feasibility and acceptability of the TECH user-driven smartphone app.

~Hypothesis 1 is that TECH will be feasible and acceptable to CINI youth, as measured via enrollment and withdrawal rates, app usage data, and exit interviews. Aim 2 will be achieved through Phase 2 beta testing (n = 10) and Phase 3's pilot RCT (n = 60) with CINI youth.

Aim 3. Test the preliminary efficacy of the TECH smartphone app as an adjunct to TAU (TECH + TAU vs. TAU-only) on cannabis use (primary outcome).

~Hypothesis 2 is that, relative to CINI youth who receive TAU-only, the TAU+TECH group will demonstrate greater reductions in cannabis use. Aim 3 will be achieved via Phase 3's pilot RCT (n = 60 CINI youth).

Recruitment information / eligibility

• Status: Recruiting
• Enrollment: 60
• Est. completion date: March 2025
• Est. primary completion date: March 2025
• Accepts healthy volunteers: No
• Gender: All
• Age group: 14 Years to 18 Years

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

• Aged 14 years to 18 years

• Able to speak and read English

• Have access to a smartphone

• Self-report past-year cannabis use

• If a minor, able to provide parental consent and child assent

Exclusion Criteria for all participants is limited to conditions that would preclude active participation in an intervention study of a mobile app (e.g., psychosis, cognitive impairment, visual impairment).

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Adolescent
• Cannabis Use
• Marijuana Abuse
• Marijuana Use

Intervention

Behavioral:
• Treatment as usual
Treatment as Usual at the local family court, which includes a brief, computerized motivation enhancement intervention. All CINI youth will receive TAU, regardless of condition.
• Teen Empowerment through Computerized Health (TECH) app
An adjunct smartphone app (i.e., TECH) developed to support TAU. All participants randomly assigned to TAU+TECH will receive the TECH app.

Locations

Country	Name	City	State
United States	Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine	Chicago	Illinois
United States	Rhode Island Hospital	Chicago	Illinois
United States	Brown University	Providence	Rhode Island
United States	Rhode Island Family Court	Providence	Rhode Island

Sponsors (4)

Lead Sponsor	Collaborator
Northwestern University	Brown University, National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), Rhode Island Hospital

Country where clinical trial is conducted

United States, 

References & Publications (1)

Helseth SA, Guigayoma J, Price D, Spirito A, Clark MA, Barnett NP, Becker SJ. Developing a Smartphone-Based Adjunct Intervention to Reduce Cannabis Use Among Juvenile Justice-Involved Adolescents: Protocol for a Multiphase Study. JMIR Res Protoc. 2022 Mar 11;11(3):e35402. doi: 10.2196/35402. — View Citation

Outcome

Type	Measure	Description	Time frame	Safety issue
Primary	Change in days of cannabis use (Preliminary Efficacy)	Self-report of total days of cannabis use, via Timeline Followback Interview	Last 90 days at baseline, and 1-, 3-, and 6-months