An entertainment-education approach to prevent COVID-19 spread: study protocol for a multi-site randomized controlled trial

• Published in: Current controlled trials in cardiovascular medicine 2020-12, Vol.21 (1), p.1025-1025, Article 1025
• Main Authors: Vandormael, Alain, Adam, Maya, Greuel, Merlin, Bärnighausen, Till
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Behavior; Behavioral intent; Clinical trials; Communicable Disease Control; Consent; Control; COVID-19; COVID-19 - prevention & control; COVID-19 - transmission; Disease prevention; Disease transmission; Disinfection; Education; Educational aspects; Entertainment-education; Epidemics; Experiments; Germany; Hand Disinfection; Health behavior; Health education; Health Education - methods; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; Humans; Infections; Intervention; Knowledge; Media coverage; Medical research; Methods; Motion Pictures; Physical Distancing; Protocol; Public health; Randomized controlled trial; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; Social Media; Social networks; Testing; Update; Video tapes in education
• ISSN: 1745-6215; 1745-6215
• DOI: 10.1186/s13063-020-04942-7

Entertainment-education (E-E) media can improve behavioral intent toward health-related practices. In the era of COVID-19, millions of people can be reached by E-E media without requiring any physical contact. We have designed a short, wordless, animated video about preventive COVID-19 behaviors that can be rapidly distributed through social media channels to a global audience. The E-E video's effectiveness, however, remains unclear. This is a multi-site, parallel group, randomized controlled trial comparing the effectiveness of an E-E video on COVID-19 against (i) an attention placebo control (APC) video and (ii) no video. For our primary outcomes, we will measure knowledge about preventive COVID-19 behaviors. We will also use a list randomization approach to measure behavioral intent toward preventative COVID-19 behaviors. In each trial arm, participants will be randomized to a control list or a control list plus an item about social distancing, washing hands, cleaning household surfaces, sharing of eating utensils, and the stockpiling of essential goods. Using an online platform, we will recruit 17,010 participants (aged 18-59 years) from the USA, the UK, Germany, Spain, France, and Mexico. German Clinical Trials Register #DRKS00021582 . Registered on May 12, 2020. This trial will utilize several randomization procedures, list experimentation methods, and state-of-the-art online technology to demonstrate the effectiveness of an E-E video to improve knowledge of, and behavioral intent toward, the prevention of COVID-19. Our results will inform future E-E video campaigns for COVID-19 and similar public health intervention needs.