Death AnxietySPGINCT06991621
The Effect of Situation Puzzle Games on Nursing Students' Death Anxiety and Meaning in Life
A study testing Puzzle game and Manual Education in people with Death Anxiety, run by China Medical University, China at 1 site in China.
Trial summary
Goal of this interventional study The purpose of this research is to investigate the effects of a scenario-based puzzle educational game on death anxiety and meaning in life among nursing students. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 months and olderHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Death Anxiety
- What is being tested?
- Puzzle game and Manual Education
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 70 participants
- Where
- 1 siteChina
- Study dates
- 21 Apr 2025to 21 Aug 2025
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- Not yet: the study is under way
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 18 months and older
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Child, Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- Third-year full-time undergraduate nursing students
- Completed clinical observation training but not yet entered clinical internship phase
- Aged ≥18 years
- Provide informed consent and voluntarily participate in the study
Who cannot join
- Participated in similar death education interventions within the past 3 months
- Diagnosed with severe mental or psychological disorders
- Currently on a leave of absence (academic or personal)
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
China1 site, 1 recruiting
- Recruiting
School of Nursing, China Medical University
Shenyang, Liaoning, 110122
Wenna Qian, PhD, +8613314021865, wenna13314021865@163.com
About this study
Official title: Mechanisms and Design Framework Study of Gamified Education in Professional Identity Formation for Medical Undergraduates
Goal of this interventional study
The purpose of this research is to investigate the effects of a scenario-based puzzle educational game on death anxiety and meaning in life among nursing students. It aims to answer the following key questions:
Read more
Can the scenario-based puzzle educational game enhance nursing students' sense of meaning in life?
Can the scenario-based puzzle educational game reduce death anxiety in nursing students?
What are nursing students' experiences and perceptions of this educational game?
Study design Researchers will compare the intervention group (participating in the game) with a control group (receiving death education manuals) to evaluate the effectiveness of the game-based intervention.
Participants will:
Be recruited through campus posters
Be randomly assigned to either the intervention or control group and complete baseline questionnaires
In the control group: Receive death education manuals twice weekly for 3 weeks
In the intervention group: Participate in group sessions (5 students per group) to play the scenario-based puzzle game twice weekly for 3 weeks
Complete follow-up questionnaires and participate in qualitative interviews regarding their experiences with manual-based education or the game intervention after the 3-week intervention period
- Conditions
- Death Anxiety
- Being tested
- Puzzle game, Manual Education
- Medical subject headings
- Necrophobia
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Puzzle gameOther
Scenario-based puzzle game sessions (group format)
Manual EducationOther
Standardized death education manual distribution
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Gamified Education | Experimental | Scenario-based puzzle game in group sessions Receives: Other: Puzzle game |
| Manual Education | Active comparator | Standardized death education manual Receives: Other: Manual Education |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Death Anxiety
A 15-item self-report scale developed by psychologist Templer (1967/1970) measuring death-related distress.
Dimensions: Affective (Items 1,3,10,13,14), Stress/Pain (Items 4,5,6,9,11), Time Awareness (Items 8,12), Cognitive (Items 2,7,15)
Scoring: Dichotomous (Yes/No) with 9 forward-scored and 6 reverse-scored items (Items 2,3,5,6,7,16*). Total score range: 0-15 (higher = greater anxiety).
Reliability: Test-retest reliability (3-week) = 0.83; KR-20 = 0.76 (original English version).
Measured: Week 0, Week 3
Meaning in Life
A 10-item scale (Steger et al.) assessing two dimensions:
Presence of Meaning (5 items): Perceived life purpose
Search for Meaning (5 items): Active pursuit of meaning
Scoring: 7-point Likert (1="Strongly Disagree" to 7="Strongly Agree"). Higher scores indicate stronger meaning.
Reliability: Cronbach's α = 0.878 (total), 0.850 (Presence), 0.907 (Search)
Measured: Week 0, Week 3
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted28 May 2025
- Study start21 Apr 2025
- Primary completion1 Aug 2025 (estimated)
- Study completion21 Aug 2025 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Death AnxietyStudies 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
- Other
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 70 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- China Medical University, China
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Wenna Qian, China Medical University, China
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT06991621
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- Situation puzzle games-2025
- Other IDs
- 2024-FC7
- Acronym
- SPGI
- Status last verified
- May 2025
- First submitted
- 13 May 2025
- Last updated
- 28 May 2025
- Results posted
- 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 28 May 2025. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Mechanisms and Design Framework Study of Gamified Education in Professional Identity Formation for Medical Undergraduates
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT06991621
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- SPGI / Situation puzzle games-2025
- Conditions
- Death Anxiety
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Recruiting
- Enrolment
- 70 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- China Medical University, ChinaUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 21 Apr 2025 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 1 Aug 2025 (estimated)
- Study completion
- 21 Aug 2025 (estimated)
- First posted
- 28 May 2025 (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.
Goal of this interventional study
The purpose of this research is to investigate the effects of a scenario-based puzzle educational game on death anxiety and meaning in life among nursing students. It aims to answer the following key questions:
Can the scenario-based puzzle educational game enhance nursing students' sense of meaning in life?
Can the scenario-based puzzle educational game reduce death anxiety in nursing students?
What are nursing students' experiences and perceptions of this educational game?
Study design Researchers will compare the intervention group (participating in the game) with a control group (receiving death education manuals) to evaluate the effectiveness of the game-based intervention.
Participants will:
Be recruited through campus posters
Be randomly assigned to either the intervention or control group and complete baseline questionnaires
In the control group: Receive death education manuals twice weekly for 3 weeks
In the intervention group: Participate in group sessions (5 students per group) to play the scenario-based puzzle game twice weekly for 3 weeks
Complete follow-up questionnaires and participate in qualitative interviews regarding their experiences with manual-based education or the game intervention after the 3-week intervention period
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Other
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Number of arms
- 2
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Gamified Education | Experimental | Other: Puzzle gameScenario-based puzzle game in group sessions |
| Manual Education | Active comparator | Other: Manual EducationStandardized death education manual |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 months and older
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Child, Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (4 listed)
- Third-year full-time undergraduate nursing students
- Completed clinical observation training but not yet entered clinical internship phase
- Aged ≥18 years
- Provide informed consent and voluntarily participate in the study
Key exclusion criteria (3 listed)
- Participated in similar death education interventions within the past 3 months
- Diagnosed with severe mental or psychological disorders
- Currently on a leave of absence (academic or personal)
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Puzzle gameScenario-based puzzle game sessions (group format) | Other | Gamified Education |
| Manual EducationStandardized death education manual distribution | Other | Manual Education |
Primary outcome
Death Anxiety
Time frame: Week 0, Week 3
A 15-item self-report scale developed by psychologist Templer (1967/1970) measuring death-related distress. Dimensions: Affective (Items 1,3,10,13,14), Stress/Pain (Items 4,5,6,9,11), Time Awareness (Items 8,12), Cognitive (Items 2,7,15) Scoring: Dichotomous (Yes/No) with 9 forward-scored and 6 reverse-scored items (Items 2,3,5,6,7,16*). Total score range: 0-15 (higher = greater anxiety). Reliability: Test-retest reliability (3-week) = 0.83; KR-20 = 0.76 (original English version).
Meaning in Life
Time frame: Week 0, Week 3
A 10-item scale (Steger et al.) assessing two dimensions: Presence of Meaning (5 items): Perceived life purpose Search for Meaning (5 items): Active pursuit of meaning Scoring: 7-point Likert (1="Strongly Disagree" to 7="Strongly Agree"). Higher scores indicate stronger meaning. Reliability: Cronbach's α = 0.878 (total), 0.850 (Presence), 0.907 (Search)
Results and safety
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 28 May 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.
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Puzzle game and Manual Education in people with Death Anxiety, run by China Medical University, China at 1 site in China.
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 4 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: looking for participants now, as of the sponsor's last update on 28 May 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 China. 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?
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
Contact Wenna Qian (13314021865, wenna13314021865@163.com), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Death Anxiety (time frame: Week 0, Week 3). The study lists 2 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 28 May 2025.