Autism Spectrum DisorderNCT05927207
Pilot Testing of a Mobile Phone App-based Intervention for Parents of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
A study testing TRIP in people with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Parent-Child Relations, run by Chinese University of Hong Kong at 1 site in Hong Kong.
Trial summary
The objective of this study is to conduct a pilot randomised controlled trial (RCT) evaluating the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of a 6-week mobile app-based intervention in empowering and supporting Chinese parents of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) children through knowledge and skills transfer… Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Any ageHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Autism Spectrum Disorder, Parent-Child Relations
- What is being tested?
- TRIP
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 40 participants
- Where
- 1 siteHong Kong
- Study dates
- 1 Aug 2023to 5 Aug 2024
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- None posted in the registry
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages Any age
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Child, Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- Chinese parents living in Hong Kong
- Parents caring for ASD children, diagnosed by clinicians according to the criteria of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) criteria and aged ≤12
- Recruited from the Child and Adolescent Psychiatric clinic at the Alice Ho Miu Ling Nethersole Hospital, a regional hospital providing the sole public child and adolescent psychiatric service in the New-Territory East Cluster of the Hospital Authority in Hong Kong
- Able to read and understand Cantonese
- Have access to an internet-enabled mobile phone with a valid phone number for the duration of the pilot trial
Who cannot join
- Parents who are not the main carer of their ASD children
- Currently receiving psychological interventions
- Undergoing mindfulness training will be excluded
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
About this study
Official title: Pilot Testing of a Mobile Phone App-based Intervention for Supporting and Empowering Parents of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD): a Mixed-method Study of Feasibility, Acceptability, and Preliminary Efficacy
The objective of this study is to conduct a pilot randomised controlled trial (RCT) evaluating the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of a 6-week mobile app-based intervention in empowering and supporting Chinese parents of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) children through knowledge and skills transfer and mindfulness training. The investigators hypothesise that the app will be feasible and acceptable, and that there will be a greater reduction in parental stress and mood symptoms, and improvement of mindfulness attitude and parenting competence in parents with ASD children after the 6-week app-based intervention than the waitlist controls.
Read the detailed description
Parents of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) children are often stressed about challenges in raising their children with multifaceted needs, and their stress could undermine the child's development. With the ever-increasing demand in clinical services and disruptions by the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19), the aim of the study is to investigate the clinical efficacy of a mobile app-based intervention in reducing stress and mood symptoms, and enhancing mindfulness and competence in parents of children with ASD. The 6-week mobile app-based intervention programme, TRIP, is a structured course of mindfulness training, and knowledge and skills transfer of parenting ASD children with specific content personalised to the participant's needs, which was developed as an accessible and scalable primary-level care platform to improve the well-being of parents.
In this study, a pilot randomized waitlist-controlled trial will be conducted. 40 parents of ASD children who are ≤12 years of age and either 1. waiting for, or 2. actively receiving treatment from a regional children psychiatric specialist clinic will be recruited. Parents will be randomized into an immediate intervention arm and a waitlist arm. Feasibility, acceptability, as well as preliminary efficacy of the app will be investigated. Parental stress level, mood symptoms, competence, and level of mindfulness will be measured before, immediately after, and 2 months after the intervention with self-reported questionnaires.
The results of the proposed study will provide insights with regards to the design and implementation of the main randomised controlled trial (RCT), contributing to the generation of evidence to the real-life efficacy of a mobile app-based intervention service model to support parents of children with ASD in the era of digital mental health. As the impact of mental well-being of parents extends beyond the parents themselves, effective management of the elevated level of parental stress in ASD families is beneficial to the family functioning and long-term development of the child. The solid evidence from the main trial can also inform clinicians and service-users in choosing the evidence-based intervention suitable to their context, among the range of commercially available products with claimed efficacy.
- Conditions
- Autism Spectrum Disorder, Parent-Child Relations
- Being tested
- TRIP
- Keywords
- digital interventions, parenting, mindfulness, psychoeducation
- Medical subject headings
- Autism Spectrum Disorder
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
TRIPOther
TRIP is a mobile app-based intervention for supporting and empowering parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), comprises of a 6-week structured training on mindfulness and educational modules on ASD parenting skills.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| TRIP App | Experimental | Both groups will be assessed at baseline on the outcome measurements, after which the immediate intervention group will begin the 6-week intervention Receives: Other: TRIP |
| Waitlist control | No intervention | Both groups will be assessed at baseline on the outcome measurements, after which the the waitlist control group will receive usual care in the following six weeks. Afterwards, the waitlist control group will complete outcome assessment once again, before receiving the 6-week intervention |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Enrolment
Response rates during recruitment
Measured: Immediately post-intervention
Retention (Intervention)
Dropout rates from pre-intervention to immediately post-intervention
Measured: Immediately post-intervention
Retention (Follow-up)
Dropout rates from pre-intervention to 2-month post intervention
Measured: 2 months post-intervention
Platform used
Platform on which the app is accessed from, Apple's iPhone operating system (iOS) or Android, will be recorded
Measured: Immediately post-intervention
Days of week of use
Whether the app is used on weekdays or weekends will be recorded
Measured: Immediately post-intervention
Time of day of use
Time of day of use (in 4-hour blocks) will be recorded
Measured: Immediately post-intervention
Number of app usage days
Number of days with logins within the 6-week intervention period
Measured: Immediately post-intervention
Average duration of app usage
Time spent in app per login within the 6-week intervention period
Measured: Immediately post-intervention
Number of unique components completed
Number of unique components completed within the 6-week intervention period
Measured: Immediately post-intervention
Number of core session completed
Number of core session completed within the 6-week intervention period
Measured: Immediately post-intervention
Number of optional session completed
Number of optional session completed within the 6-week intervention period
Measured: Immediately post-intervention
App usability
Measured by the 10-item System Usability Scale (SUS; Brooke, 1996) for assessing the usability of products and apps. SUS scores have a range of 0 to 100, with a higher score means greater app usability.
Measured: Immediately post-intervention
App quality
Measured by the 20-item Mobile Application Rating Scale - User Version (uMARS; Stoyanov et al., 2016) that measures engagement, functionality, aesthetics, information quality of mobile health apps. Scores range from 1 to 5, with a higher score indicating higher app quality.
Measured: Immediately post-intervention
Secondary outcomes (15)
Parental anxiety
Measured by the 7-item Generalised Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7; Spitzer et al., 2006) for anxiety symptoms. GAD-7 scores range from 0 to 21, higher scores indicating greater levels of anxiety symptoms.
Measured: Pre-intervention
Parental anxiety
Measured by the 7-item Generalised Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7; Spitzer et al., 2006) for anxiety symptoms. GAD-7 scores range from 0 to 21, higher scores indicating greater levels of anxiety symptoms.
Measured: Immediately post-intervention
Parental anxiety
Measured by the 7-item Generalised Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7; Spitzer et al., 2006) for anxiety symptoms. GAD-7 scores range from 0 to 21, higher scores indicating greater levels of anxiety symptoms.
Measured: 2-months post-intervention
Parental depression
Measured by the 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9; Kroenke et al., 2001) for depressive symptoms. PHQ-9 scores range from 0 to 27, higher scores indicating greater levels of depressive symptoms.
Measured: Pre-intervention
Parental depression
Measured by the 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9; Kroenke et al., 2001) for depressive symptoms. PHQ-9 scores range from 0 to 27, higher scores indicating greater levels of depressive symptoms.
Measured: Immediately post-intervention
Parental depression
Measured by the 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9; Kroenke et al., 2001) for depressive symptoms. PHQ-9 scores range from 0 to 27, higher scores indicating greater levels of depressive symptoms.
Measured: 2-months post-intervention
Parenting stress
Measured by the 36-item Parenting Stress Index-Short Form (PSI-SF), considering three domains of parenting distress, difficult child, and parent-child dysfunctional interaction. Scores range from 36 to 180, with higher scores indicating greater levels of stress.
Measured: Pre-intervention
Parenting stress
Measured by the 36-item Parenting Stress Index-Short Form (PSI-SF), considering three domains of parenting distress, difficult child, and parent-child dysfunctional interaction. Scores range from 36 to 180, with higher scores indicating greater levels of stress.
Measured: Immediately post-intervention
Parenting stress
Measured by the 36-item Parenting Stress Index-Short Form (PSI-SF), considering three domains of parenting distress, difficult child, and parent-child dysfunctional interaction. Scores range from 36 to 180, with higher scores indicating greater levels of stress.
Measured: 2-months post-intervention
Parenting competence
Measured by the 17-item Parenting Sense of Competence scale (PSOC; Gibaud-Wallston \& Wandersman, 1978). Scores ranges between 17 to 102, with higher scores indicating a higher parenting sense of competency.
Measured: Pre-intervention
Parenting competence
Measured by the 17-item Parenting Sense of Competence scale (PSOC; Gibaud-Wallston \& Wandersman, 1978). Scores ranges between 17 to 102, with higher scores indicating a higher parenting sense of competency.
Measured: Immediately post-intervention
Parenting competence
Measured by the 17-item Parenting Sense of Competence scale (PSOC; Gibaud-Wallston \& Wandersman; 1978). Scores ranges between 17 to 102, with higher scores indicating a higher parenting sense of competency.
Measured: 2-months post-intervention
Parenting efficacy
Measured by the 6-item Parenting Efficacy subscale of the Parenting Self-Agency Measure (Dumka et al., 1996). Scores ranges between 6-42, with higher scores indicating higher levels of parenting efficacy.
Measured: Pre-intervention
Parenting efficacy
Measured by the 6-item Parenting Efficacy subscale of the Parenting Self-Agency Measure (Dumka et al., 1996). Scores ranges between 6-42, with higher scores indicating higher levels of parenting efficacy.
Measured: Immediately post-intervention
Parenting efficacy
Measured by the 6-item Parenting Efficacy subscale of the Parenting Self-Agency Measure (Dumka et al., 1996). Scores ranges between 6-42, with higher scores indicating higher levels of parenting efficacy.
Measured: 2-months post-intervention
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted3 Jul 2023
- Study start1 Aug 2023
- Primary completion5 Aug 2024
- Study completion5 Aug 2024
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Autism Spectrum DisorderStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- More trials run by Chinese University of Hong KongThe sponsor's other registered studies.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Supportive care
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Model description
- Randomised wait-list controlled trial
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 40 participants (actual)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Chinese University of Hong Kong
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Wong Wing Ho, Chinese University of Hong Kong
- Investigators
- Oscar Wong, MBChB, Principal investigator, Chinese University of Hong Kong
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT05927207
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- 2022.586
- Other IDs
- 10210356
- Status last verified
- Dec 2025
- First submitted
- 4 Jun 2023
- Last updated
- 19 Dec 2025
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 19 Dec 2025. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Pilot Testing of a Mobile Phone App-based Intervention for Supporting and Empowering Parents of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD): a Mixed-method Study of Feasibility, Acceptability, and Preliminary Efficacy
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT05927207
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- 2022.586
- Conditions
- Autism Spectrum Disorder, Parent-Child Relations
- Keywords
- digital interventions, parenting, mindfulness, psychoeducation
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Completed
- Enrolment
- 40 participants (actual)
- Lead sponsor
- Chinese University of Hong KongUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 1 Aug 2023 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 5 Aug 2024 (actual)
- Study completion
- 5 Aug 2024 (actual)
- First posted
- 3 Jul 2023 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
The objective of this study is to conduct a pilot randomised controlled trial (RCT) evaluating the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of a 6-week mobile app-based intervention in empowering and supporting Chinese parents of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) children through knowledge and skills transfer and mindfulness training. The investigators hypothesise that the app will be feasible and acceptable, and that there will be a greater reduction in parental stress and mood symptoms, and improvement of mindfulness attitude and parenting competence in parents with ASD children after the 6-week app-based intervention than the waitlist controls.
Detailed description
Parents of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) children are often stressed about challenges in raising their children with multifaceted needs, and their stress could undermine the child's development. With the ever-increasing demand in clinical services and disruptions by the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19), the aim of the study is to investigate the clinical efficacy of a mobile app-based intervention in reducing stress and mood symptoms, and enhancing mindfulness and competence in parents of children with ASD. The 6-week mobile app-based intervention programme, TRIP, is a structured course of mindfulness training, and knowledge and skills transfer of parenting ASD children with specific content personalised to the participant's needs, which was developed as an accessible and scalable primary-level care platform to improve the well-being of parents.
In this study, a pilot randomized waitlist-controlled trial will be conducted. 40 parents of ASD children who are ≤12 years of age and either 1. waiting for, or 2. actively receiving treatment from a regional children psychiatric specialist clinic will be recruited. Parents will be randomized into an immediate intervention arm and a waitlist arm. Feasibility, acceptability, as well as preliminary efficacy of the app will be investigated. Parental stress level, mood symptoms, competence, and level of mindfulness will be measured before, immediately after, and 2 months after the intervention with self-reported questionnaires.
The results of the proposed study will provide insights with regards to the design and implementation of the main randomised controlled trial (RCT), contributing to the generation of evidence to the real-life efficacy of a mobile app-based intervention service model to support parents of children with ASD in the era of digital mental health. As the impact of mental well-being of parents extends beyond the parents themselves, effective management of the elevated level of parental stress in ASD families is beneficial to the family functioning and long-term development of the child. The solid evidence from the main trial can also inform clinicians and service-users in choosing the evidence-based intervention suitable to their context, among the range of commercially available products with claimed efficacy.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Supportive care
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Number of arms
- 2
- Model description
- Randomised wait-list controlled trial
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| TRIP App | Experimental | Other: TRIPBoth groups will be assessed at baseline on the outcome measurements, after which the immediate intervention group will begin the 6-week intervention |
| Waitlist control | No intervention | –Both groups will be assessed at baseline on the outcome measurements, after which the the waitlist control group will receive usual care in the following six weeks. Afterwards, the waitlist control group will complete outcome assessment once again, before receiving the 6-week intervention |
Who may qualify
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Child, Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (5 listed)
- Chinese parents living in Hong Kong
- Parents caring for ASD children, diagnosed by clinicians according to the criteria of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) criteria and aged ≤12
- Recruited from the Child and Adolescent Psychiatric clinic at the Alice Ho Miu Ling Nethersole Hospital, a regional hospital providing the sole public child and adolescent psychiatric service in the New-Territory East Cluster of the Hospital Authority in Hong Kong
- Able to read and understand Cantonese
- Have access to an internet-enabled mobile phone with a valid phone number for the duration of the pilot trial
Key exclusion criteria (3 listed)
- Parents who are not the main carer of their ASD children
- Currently receiving psychological interventions
- Undergoing mindfulness training will be excluded
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| TRIPTRIP is a mobile app-based intervention for supporting and empowering parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), comprises of a 6-week structured training on mindfulness and educational modules on ASD parenting skills. | Other | TRIP App |
Primary outcome
Enrolment
Time frame: Immediately post-intervention
Response rates during recruitment
Retention (Intervention)
Time frame: Immediately post-intervention
Dropout rates from pre-intervention to immediately post-intervention
Retention (Follow-up)
Time frame: 2 months post-intervention
Dropout rates from pre-intervention to 2-month post intervention
Platform used
Time frame: Immediately post-intervention
Platform on which the app is accessed from, Apple's iPhone operating system (iOS) or Android, will be recorded
Days of week of use
Time frame: Immediately post-intervention
Whether the app is used on weekdays or weekends will be recorded
Time of day of use
Time frame: Immediately post-intervention
Time of day of use (in 4-hour blocks) will be recorded
Number of app usage days
Time frame: Immediately post-intervention
Number of days with logins within the 6-week intervention period
Average duration of app usage
Time frame: Immediately post-intervention
Time spent in app per login within the 6-week intervention period
Number of unique components completed
Time frame: Immediately post-intervention
Number of unique components completed within the 6-week intervention period
Number of core session completed
Time frame: Immediately post-intervention
Number of core session completed within the 6-week intervention period
Number of optional session completed
Time frame: Immediately post-intervention
Number of optional session completed within the 6-week intervention period
App usability
Time frame: Immediately post-intervention
Measured by the 10-item System Usability Scale (SUS; Brooke, 1996) for assessing the usability of products and apps. SUS scores have a range of 0 to 100, with a higher score means greater app usability.
App quality
Time frame: Immediately post-intervention
Measured by the 20-item Mobile Application Rating Scale - User Version (uMARS; Stoyanov et al., 2016) that measures engagement, functionality, aesthetics, information quality of mobile health apps. Scores range from 1 to 5, with a higher score indicating higher app quality.
15 secondary outcomes
Parental anxiety
Time frame: Pre-intervention
Parental anxiety
Time frame: Immediately post-intervention
Parental anxiety
Time frame: 2-months post-intervention
Parental depression
Time frame: Pre-intervention
Parental depression
Time frame: Immediately post-intervention
Parental depression
Time frame: 2-months post-intervention
Parenting stress
Time frame: Pre-intervention
Parenting stress
Time frame: Immediately post-intervention
Parenting stress
Time frame: 2-months post-intervention
Parenting competence
Time frame: Pre-intervention
Parenting competence
Time frame: Immediately post-intervention
Parenting competence
Time frame: 2-months post-intervention
Parenting efficacy
Time frame: Pre-intervention
Parenting efficacy
Time frame: Immediately post-intervention
Parenting efficacy
Time frame: 2-months post-intervention
Results and safety
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 19 Dec 2025.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: No
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part. This study is not recruiting at the moment.
Oscar Wong, MBChB principal investigator
Chinese University of Hong Kong
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing TRIP in people with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Parent-Child Relations, run by Chinese University of Hong Kong at 1 site in Hong Kong.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 5 inclusion and 3 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 19 Dec 2025. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in Hong Kong. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Enrolment (time frame: Immediately post-intervention). The study lists 13 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 19 Dec 2025.