ParentingNCT06408818
Study of an Online Program to Help Parents Talk With Their Tween Children About Health, Gender, Body-Image, and Relationships
A study testing Media Aware Parent - Tween in people with Parenting and Parent-Child Relations, run by Innovation Research & Training at 1 site in United States.
Trial summary
The goal of this study is to learn if Media Aware Parent - Tween, an online program for parents of children ages 9-12, helps parents have effective conversations with their child about health and media. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 9 years and olderHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Parenting, Parent-Child Relations, Communication
- What is being tested?
- Media Aware Parent - Tween
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 390 participants
- Where
- 1 siteUnited States
- Study dates
- 6 May 2024to 24 Mar 2025
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- Yes, posted in the registrySummary in the doctors' view
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 9 years and older
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Child, Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- The adult must be the legal guardian of a child ages 9 to 12 years old.
- The parent must be able and willing to receive email and text communication as part of the study.
- The parent-child pair must have access to a smartphone with internet connection as the resource review will be completed online in a format that is best viewed on a smartphone.
- The parent-child pair must be fluent in English as the study materials are written in English.
- The parent must indicate that they will give the child participant privacy to complete the questionnaires.
- Both the adult and child must agree to participate.
Who cannot join
- Only one parent-child pair per family may participate in the study. If the parent has more than one child aged 9 to 12 that is willing to participate, the parent will be prompted to select the child participant based on the following: if the parent's last name begins with a letter from A to M, select the youngest eligible child willing to participate or if the parent's last name begins with a letter from N to Z, select the oldest eligible child willing to participate.
- In an effort to ensure diversity in parent gender and race/ethnicity, not all eligible pairs who are interested in participating will be enrolled in the study.
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
United States1 site
innovation Research and Training
Durham, North Carolina, 27713
About this study
Official title: Online Parent Media Literacy Program to Promote Preadolescent Health
The goal of this study is to learn if Media Aware Parent - Tween, an online program for parents of children ages 9-12, helps parents have effective conversations with their child about health and media.
Read the detailed description
Parent-child pairs (N=300 pairs) will be recruited to participate in a randomized controlled trial. Parent consent and parent permission and youth assent will be sought. Participant pairs will be randomized into one of two study arms: intervention and active control. All participants will complete a web-based pre-test questionnaire. Youth and parents will then receive access to their randomly assigned resource. Approximately four weeks after completing the pre-test questionnaire, all participants will complete a web-based post-test questionnaire.
- Conditions
- Parenting, Parent-Child Relations, Communication
- Being tested
- Media Aware Parent - Tween, Active Control Resource
- Keywords
- Preadolescent Health, Media Literacy, Parent-Child Communication, Gender Stereotypes, Body-Image, Puberty, Sexual Health, Relationship Health
- Medical subject headings
- Communication
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Media Aware Parent - TweenBehavioural
Media Aware Parent - Tween, is an online program for parents of tweens ages 9-12 designed to help parents have effective conversations with their child about body image, sexual development, gender stereotypes, romantic relationships, and media.
Active Control ResourceBehavioural
Parents will have access to medically-accurate information about topics such as body image, sexual development, gender stereotypes, and romantic relationships.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Intervention Program: Media Aware Parent -Tween | Experimental | Participants will have access to an intervention between pre-test and post-test assessments. The intervention, Media Aware Parent -Tween, is an online program for parents of tweens ages 9-12 designed to help parents have effective conversations with their child about body image, sexual development, gender stereotypes, romantic relationships, and media. Receives: Behavioral: Media Aware Parent - Tween |
| Active Control Resource | Active comparator | Parents will have access to medically-accurate information about topics such as body image, sexual development, gender stereotypes, and romantic relationships. Receives: Behavioral: Active Control Resource |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Change From Pretest in Child Report of Frequency of Parent-child Communication
Child will respond to questions about the frequency with which their parent has talked with them about 12 topics related to prepubescent health on a Likert-type scale [1 = Never; 2 = A little; 3 = A lot]. Reponses on items are averaged, and higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Measured: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Change From Pretest in Parent Report of Frequency of Parent-child Communication
Parent will respond to questions about the frequency with which they have talked with their child about 12 topics related to prepubescent health on a Likert-type scale [1 = Never; 2 = A little; 3 = A lot]. Reponses on items are averaged, and higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Measured: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Change From Pretest in Child Report of General Parent-child Communication Quality
Child will indicate the extent to which they agree with nine statements about communication with their parent on a Likert-type scale [1 = Strongly disagree, 2 = Disagree, 3 = Agree, 4 = Strongly agree]. Reponses on items are averaged, and higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Measured: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Change From Pretest in Parent Report of General Parent-child Communication Quality
Parent will indicate the extent to which they agree with nine statements about communication with their child on a Likert-type scale [1 = Strongly disagree, 2 = Disagree, 3 = Agree, 4 = Strongly agree]. Reponses on items are averaged, and higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Measured: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Change From Pretest in Child Report of Active Parental Media Mediation
Child's perception of parent's use of active media mediation will be assessed using two items (e.g., "How often does your parent tell you what they see in media is different than real life?"). Participants will rate items on a 5-point Likert scale [1 = never; 2 = almost never; 3 = sometimes; 4 = often; 5 = very often]. Reponses on items are averaged, and higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Measured: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Change From Pretest in Parent Report of Active Parental Media Mediation
Parents' use of active media mediation will be assessed using two items (e.g., "How often do you tell your child what they see in media is different than real life?"). Participants will rate items on a 5-point Likert scale [1 = never; 2 = almost never; 3 = sometimes; 4 = often; 5 = very often]. Reponses on items are averaged, and higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Measured: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Change From Pretest in Child Report of Parental Restrictive Media Mediation
Child's perception of parent's use of restrictive media mediation will be assessed using one item (e.g., "How often does your parent limit the amount of your screen time (watching shows, going online, playing video games, or using social media)?"). Participants will rate items on a 5-point Likert scale [1 = never; 2 = almost never; 3 = sometimes; 4 = often; 5 = very often]. Higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Measured: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Change From Pretest in Parent Report of Parental Restrictive Media Mediation
Parent's use of restrictive media mediation will be assessed using one item (e.g., "How often do you limit the amount of your child's screen time (watching shows, going online, playing video games, or using social media)?"). Participants will rate items on a 5-point Likert scale [1 = never; 2 = almost never; 3 = sometimes; 4 = often; 5 = very often].
Higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Measured: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Change From Pretest in Child Report of Awareness of Family Media Rules
Child will indicate on one item whether their family has rules about media use. Response options are "yes (1)," "no (0)," and "unsure (2)". Yes (1) indicates a more favorable outcome.
Measured: Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Change From Pretest in Parent Report of Awareness of Family Media Rules
Parent will indicate on one item whether their family has rules about media use. Response options are "yes (1)," "no (0)," and "unsure (2)". Yes (1) indicates a more favorable outcome.
Measured: Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Change From Pretest in Child Report of Acceptance of Gender Stereotypical Roles
Child will respond to the 7 items to indicate their agreement with statements about gender using a 5-point Likert scale (1 = "disagree a lot" to 5 = "agree a lot"). Reponses on items are averaged, and higher scores indicate a less favorable outcome.
Measured: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Change From Pretest in Child Report of Attitudes Toward Puberty
Child will respond to one item (i.e., "I like the fact that I am becoming a woman/man") on a 4-point scale from 1 = disagree a lot to 4 = Agree a lot to assess participants' attitudes towards puberty. Higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Measured: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Change From Pretest in Child Report of Body-esteem
Child will respond to four statements about how they feel about their body (e.g., I'm proud of my body) on a 5-point scale [1 = Never; 2 = Seldom; 3 = Sometimes; 4 = Often; 5 =Always]. Reponses on items are averaged, and higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Measured: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted10 May 2024
- Study start6 May 2024
- Primary completion24 Mar 2025
- Study completion24 Mar 2025
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Posted resultsParticipant flow, outcome measures and adverse events reported by the sponsor.
- Other trials for ParentingStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- 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
- Prevention
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Double blind
- Who is masked
- Participant, Outcomes assessor
- Enrolment
- 390 participants (actual)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Innovation Research & Training
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
- Responsible party
- Sponsor
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT06408818
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- TweenHealthStudy-R21-23-006-01
- Other IDs
- 5R21HD108440-02
- Status last verified
- Jun 2025
- First submitted
- 7 May 2024
- Last updated
- 10 Jul 2025
- Results posted
- Yes, on ClinicalTrials.gov
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 10 Jul 2025. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Online Parent Media Literacy Program to Promote Preadolescent Health
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT06408818
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- TweenHealthStudy-R21-23-006-01
- Conditions
- Parenting, Parent-Child Relations, Communication
- Keywords
- Preadolescent Health, Media Literacy, Parent-Child Communication, Gender Stereotypes, Body-Image, Puberty, Sexual Health, Relationship Health
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Completed
- Enrolment
- 390 participants (actual)
- Lead sponsor
- Innovation Research & TrainingUniversity, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
- Study start
- 6 May 2024 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 24 Mar 2025 (actual)
- Study completion
- 24 Mar 2025 (actual)
- First posted
- 10 May 2024 (actual)
- Results
- Posted 10 Jul 2025
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
The goal of this study is to learn if Media Aware Parent - Tween, an online program for parents of children ages 9-12, helps parents have effective conversations with their child about health and media.
Detailed description
Parent-child pairs (N=300 pairs) will be recruited to participate in a randomized controlled trial. Parent consent and parent permission and youth assent will be sought. Participant pairs will be randomized into one of two study arms: intervention and active control. All participants will complete a web-based pre-test questionnaire. Youth and parents will then receive access to their randomly assigned resource. Approximately four weeks after completing the pre-test questionnaire, all participants will complete a web-based post-test questionnaire.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Prevention
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Double blind (participant, outcomes assessor)
- Number of arms
- 2
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Intervention Program: Media Aware Parent -Tween | Experimental | Behavioral: Media Aware Parent - TweenParticipants will have access to an intervention between pre-test and post-test assessments. The intervention, Media Aware Parent -Tween, is an online program for parents of tweens ages 9-12 designed to help parents have effective conversations with their child about body image, sexual development, gender stereotypes, romantic relationships, and media. |
| Active Control Resource | Active comparator | Behavioral: Active Control ResourceParents will have access to medically-accurate information about topics such as body image, sexual development, gender stereotypes, and romantic relationships. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 9 years and older
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Child, Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (6 listed)
- The adult must be the legal guardian of a child ages 9 to 12 years old.
- The parent must be able and willing to receive email and text communication as part of the study.
- The parent-child pair must have access to a smartphone with internet connection as the resource review will be completed online in a format that is best viewed on a smartphone.
- The parent-child pair must be fluent in English as the study materials are written in English.
- The parent must indicate that they will give the child participant privacy to complete the questionnaires.
Key exclusion criteria (2 listed)
- Only one parent-child pair per family may participate in the study. If the parent has more than one child aged 9 to 12 that is willing to participate, the parent will be prompted to select the child participant based on the following: if the parent's last name begins with a letter from A to M, select the youngest eligible child willing to participate or if the parent's last name begins with a letter from N to Z, select the oldest eligible child willing to participate.
- In an effort to ensure diversity in parent gender and race/ethnicity, not all eligible pairs who are interested in participating will be enrolled in the study.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Media Aware Parent - TweenMedia Aware Parent - Tween, is an online program for parents of tweens ages 9-12 designed to help parents have effective conversations with their child about body image, sexual development, gender stereotypes, romantic relationships, and media. | Behavioural | Intervention Program: Media Aware Parent -Tween |
| Active Control ResourceParents will have access to medically-accurate information about topics such as body image, sexual development, gender stereotypes, and romantic relationships. | Behavioural | Active Control Resource |
Primary outcome
Change From Pretest in Child Report of Frequency of Parent-child Communication
Time frame: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Child will respond to questions about the frequency with which their parent has talked with them about 12 topics related to prepubescent health on a Likert-type scale [1 = Never; 2 = A little; 3 = A lot]. Reponses on items are averaged, and higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Change From Pretest in Parent Report of Frequency of Parent-child Communication
Time frame: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Parent will respond to questions about the frequency with which they have talked with their child about 12 topics related to prepubescent health on a Likert-type scale [1 = Never; 2 = A little; 3 = A lot]. Reponses on items are averaged, and higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Change From Pretest in Child Report of General Parent-child Communication Quality
Time frame: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Child will indicate the extent to which they agree with nine statements about communication with their parent on a Likert-type scale [1 = Strongly disagree, 2 = Disagree, 3 = Agree, 4 = Strongly agree]. Reponses on items are averaged, and higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Change From Pretest in Parent Report of General Parent-child Communication Quality
Time frame: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Parent will indicate the extent to which they agree with nine statements about communication with their child on a Likert-type scale [1 = Strongly disagree, 2 = Disagree, 3 = Agree, 4 = Strongly agree]. Reponses on items are averaged, and higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Change From Pretest in Child Report of Active Parental Media Mediation
Time frame: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Child's perception of parent's use of active media mediation will be assessed using two items (e.g., "How often does your parent tell you what they see in media is different than real life?"). Participants will rate items on a 5-point Likert scale [1 = never; 2 = almost never; 3 = sometimes; 4 = often; 5 = very often]. Reponses on items are averaged, and higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Change From Pretest in Parent Report of Active Parental Media Mediation
Time frame: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Parents' use of active media mediation will be assessed using two items (e.g., "How often do you tell your child what they see in media is different than real life?"). Participants will rate items on a 5-point Likert scale [1 = never; 2 = almost never; 3 = sometimes; 4 = often; 5 = very often]. Reponses on items are averaged, and higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Change From Pretest in Child Report of Parental Restrictive Media Mediation
Time frame: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Child's perception of parent's use of restrictive media mediation will be assessed using one item (e.g., "How often does your parent limit the amount of your screen time (watching shows, going online, playing video games, or using social media)?"). Participants will rate items on a 5-point Likert scale [1 = never; 2 = almost never; 3 = sometimes; 4 = often; 5 = very often]. Higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Change From Pretest in Parent Report of Parental Restrictive Media Mediation
Time frame: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Parent's use of restrictive media mediation will be assessed using one item (e.g., "How often do you limit the amount of your child's screen time (watching shows, going online, playing video games, or using social media)?"). Participants will rate items on a 5-point Likert scale [1 = never; 2 = almost never; 3 = sometimes; 4 = often; 5 = very often]. Higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Change From Pretest in Child Report of Awareness of Family Media Rules
Time frame: Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Child will indicate on one item whether their family has rules about media use. Response options are "yes (1)," "no (0)," and "unsure (2)". Yes (1) indicates a more favorable outcome.
Change From Pretest in Parent Report of Awareness of Family Media Rules
Time frame: Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Parent will indicate on one item whether their family has rules about media use. Response options are "yes (1)," "no (0)," and "unsure (2)". Yes (1) indicates a more favorable outcome.
Change From Pretest in Child Report of Acceptance of Gender Stereotypical Roles
Time frame: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Child will respond to the 7 items to indicate their agreement with statements about gender using a 5-point Likert scale (1 = "disagree a lot" to 5 = "agree a lot"). Reponses on items are averaged, and higher scores indicate a less favorable outcome.
Change From Pretest in Child Report of Attitudes Toward Puberty
Time frame: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Child will respond to one item (i.e., "I like the fact that I am becoming a woman/man") on a 4-point scale from 1 = disagree a lot to 4 = Agree a lot to assess participants' attitudes towards puberty. Higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Change From Pretest in Child Report of Body-esteem
Time frame: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)
Child will respond to four statements about how they feel about their body (e.g., I'm proud of my body) on a 5-point scale [1 = Never; 2 = Seldom; 3 = Sometimes; 4 = Often; 5 =Always]. Reponses on items are averaged, and higher scores indicate a more favorable outcome.
Results and safety
Loading the posted results from ClinicalTrials.gov…
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 10 Jul 2025.
- Posted resultsParticipant flow, baseline, all outcome measures and adverse events.
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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.
The record lists no contact. Use the official record to reach the sponsor.
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Media Aware Parent - Tween in people with Parenting and Parent-Child Relations, run by Innovation Research & Training at 1 site in United States.
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 6 inclusion and 2 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 10 Jul 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 United States. 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?
Yes. Results are posted in the registry (first posted 10 Jul 2025). A summary is in the For doctors view, and the full results are on ClinicalTrials.gov.
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?
Change From Pretest in Child Report of Frequency of Parent-child Communication (time frame: Pretest (at baseline) and Posttest (about four weeks after pretest questionnaire completion)). 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 10 Jul 2025.