Overview
This project is a pilot trial of the Engaging Families home practice smartphone application (or "app") as an add on to a family-based prevention program. Although there are many evidence-based preventive interventions delivered to caregivers to prevent youth substance use and mental illness and promote youth positive family and youth outcomes, the impact of these interventions is often limited by low home practice of intervention skills among caregivers. The Engaging Families home practice app is a digital behavior change intervention that was developed to support caregivers in practicing intervention skills at home. Researchers will ask participants if the app was acceptable and feasible for daily use at home. Researchers may also compare how often caregivers who use the study app do home practice of intervention skills compared with caregivers who do not receive the home practice app but are encouraged to use an app to help schedule their activities.
Description
The goals of the current pilot trial are to examine the acceptability and feasibility of the Engaging Families home practice smartphone application (or "app"). The Engaging Families app was developed and designed to support families who are already enrolled in and participating in the family-based prevention program Bridges. Families will be assigned to either receive the Engaging Families home practice app or another app to support parents' home practice of skills that they learn during the Bridges program. Acceptability and feasibility as well as preliminary effects will be assessed via survey measures. Select participants will be invited to participate in a post-intervention interview to also assess acceptability and feasibility of the app intervention.
Eligibility
Caregiver Inclusion Criteria:
- Informed consent
- Ownership and regular use of a smartphone
- English or Spanish language fluency
- Concurrent enrollment in the family-based EBI Bridges
- Parent of a child aged 11-17 years old
Caregiver Exclusion Criteria:
- Decline to download the home practice app on their personal smartphone.
Child Inclusion Criteria:
- Parent/guardian consent
- Informed assent
- Parent is enrolled in the study
- English reading ability at the 4th grade level or higher
Child Exclusion Criteria:
- No parent/guardian consent
- Parent/guardian is not enrolled in the study concurrently