Project description:The burden of depressive symptoms among middle-aged and older Chinese during the COVID-19 pandemic is unclear, and the contribution of social media use to depressive symptoms in this population has not been studied. To address the gaps, we analyzed data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study, nationally representative biannual surveys among adults aged ≥45 years. Social media use and depressive symptoms were measured in the 2018 and 2020 surveys. We tested longitudinal associations between baseline (2018) social media activities and risk of depressive symptoms in two years among 9121 participants without depressive symptoms. We also evaluated whether social media activity could reduce depressive symptoms during this period among 5302 individuals with depressive symptoms at baseline. Depressive symptoms affected 36·0% of this population in 2020. Women, individuals living in rural areas, and residents of western China provinces were particularly affected. Among participants without depressive symptoms, engaging in social media activities at baseline was associated with a 24.0% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 10-36%) lower likelihood of developing depressive symptoms over the next two years. Among depressed participants, compared to individuals not using social media, those initiating three or more social media activities during this period had 1.24 (95% CI: 1.05-1.46) times higher chance of becoming non-depressed, and those using social media all the time were 1·36 (95% CI: 1·09-1·72) times more likely to become non-depressed. In conclusion, middle-aged and older Chinese adults have a substantial burden of depressive symptoms, and social media activities may help to prevent and reduce the symptoms.
Project description:Background and objectivesSocial media use has been linked to socioemotional health; however, less is known regarding whether these associations are moderated by age. Additionally, as the use of social media in older adult populations is rapidly increasing, there is a greater need for the investigation of psychometric properties of social media usage scales before determining age differences in the impact of social media on socioemotional health outcomes.Research design and methodsUsing an online adult life-span sample (n = 592), the current cross-sectional study tested the measurement invariance of the general social media usage subscale of the Media and Technology Usage and Attitudes Scale across younger (aged 19-54) versus older (aged 55-81) adults and whether age moderated associations between social media use and socioemotional health (depressive symptoms, self-esteem, and envy).ResultsConfirmatory factor analyses revealed that posting-related and checking-related items were noninvariant across age groups. In multigroup structural equation models accounting for differential item functioning, higher social media use was associated with more depressive symptoms in younger adults, but not in older adults. While higher social media use was associated with higher envy in both age groups, this association was stronger in younger adults.Discussion and implicationsFindings suggest younger adults may be more susceptible to the detrimental effects of social media use on socioemotional health. Future directions regarding the measurement of social media use and the salience of social media use across the life span are discussed.
Project description:ImportanceSocial media campaigns have been successfully implemented in nontherapeutic trials. However, evidence to support their utility in cancer therapeutic trials is limited.ObjectiveTo examine physician attitudes toward and perceptions of social media use for therapeutic trial recruitment of patients with cancer.Design, setting, and participantsThis qualitative study engaged 44 physicians (24 academic based and 20 community based) at the main academic and 6 affiliated community sites of City of Hope in Duarte, California. Semistructured interviews were conducted in person or by telephone from March to June 2018. An interview guide was developed to explore perceptions of social media use for accrual of cancer therapeutic trials. Responses were recorded digitally and transcribed. Data were analyzed using qualitative content analysis.Main outcomes and measuresPhysicians' perceptions of the advantages and disadvantages of using social media for clinical trial recruitment, strategies to improve uptake of social media in clinical trials, and the barriers and facilitators to social media use for professional purposes in general.ResultsOf the 44 participants, 16 (36%) were women, 30 (68%) had more than 10 years of practice experience, 24 (55%) practiced in academia, and 20 (45%) practiced in the community. Physicians most commonly cited increased trial awareness and visibility as an advantage of using social media for trial recruitment. Cited disadvantages were increased administrative burden and risk of misinformation. Physicians also reported a need for institutional-level interventions (eg, restructuring of clinical trial offices to include personnel with social media expertise), increased evidence-based approaches to social media use, and more physician training on the use of social media. Perceived facilitators to professional social media use were networking and education; barriers included lack of time and lack of evidence of benefit.Conclusions and relevanceIn this qualitative study, physicians recognized the benefits of using social media for clinical trial recruitment but noted that barriers, including increased administrative burden, increased time, and the risk of misinformation, remain. Future interventions to address these concerns are a required first step in increasing digital engagement for clinical trial accrual purposes.
Project description:BACKGROUND:Novel alcohol prevention strategies are needed for heavy-drinking young adults. Sleep problems are common among young adults who drink heavily and are a risk factor for developing an alcohol use disorder (AUD). Young adults, interested in the connection between sleep and alcohol, are open to getting help with their sleep. Therefore, sleep interventions may offer an innovative solution. This study evaluates social media advertising for reaching young adults and recruiting them for a new alcohol prevention program focused on sleep. OBJECTIVE:This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness and cost of using Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat advertising to reach young adults who drink heavily for a sleep intervention; characterize responders' sleep, alcohol use, and related concerns and interests; and identify the most appealing advertising content. METHODS:In study 1, advertisements targeting young adults with sleep concerns, heavy alcohol use, or interest in participating in a sleep program ran over 3 months. Advertisements directed volunteers to a brief web-based survey to determine initial sleep program eligibility and characterize the concerns or interests that attracted them to click the advertisement. In study 2, three advertisements ran simultaneously for 2 days to enable us to compare the effectiveness of specific advertising themes. RESULTS:In study 1, advertisements generated 13,638 clicks, 909 surveys, and 27 enrolled volunteers in 3 months across the social media platforms. Fees averaged US $0.27 per click, US $3.99 per completed survey, US $11.43 per volunteer meeting initial screening eligibility, and US $106.59 per study enrollee. On average, those who completed the web-based survey were 21.1 (SD 2.3) years of age, and 69.4% (631/909) were female. Most reported sleep concerns (725/909, 79.8%) and an interest in the connection between sleep and alcohol use (547/909, 60.2%), but few had drinking concerns (49/909, 5.4%). About one-third (317/909, 34.9%) were identified as being at risk for developing an AUD based on a validated alcohol screener. Among this subsample, 8.5% (27/317) met the final criteria and were enrolled in the trial. Some volunteers also referred additional volunteers by word of mouth. In study 2, advertisements targeting sleep yielded a higher response rate than advertisements targeting alcohol use (0.91% vs 0.56% click rate, respectively; P<.001). CONCLUSIONS:Social media advertisements designed to target young adults with sleep concerns reached those who also drank alcohol heavily, despite few being concerned about their drinking. Moreover, advertisements focused on sleep were more effective than those focused on drinking. Compared with previous studies, cost-effectiveness was moderate for engagement (impressions to clicks), excellent for conversion (clicks to survey completion), and reasonable for enrollment. These data demonstrate the utility of social media advertising focused on sleep to reach young adults who drink heavily and recruit them for intervention.
Project description:AimsThe present study aimed to evaluate the potential of social media as an approach to recruit hypertensive subjects.Methods and resultsIn addition to conventional trial recruitment, Facebook ads were run. Over a 115-day recruitment period, Facebook reached 5.3 million people in 168 separate campaigns run in the proximity of 19 sites in the USA and 14 sites in Europe. A total of 182 839 participants (3.4%) clicked on the ad; of those 10 483 subjects (5.7%) completed a dedicated questionnaire. This resulted in 3632 potential candidates. A total of 285 potential candidates were recruited by various recruitment strategies in the specified time period, of which 184/285 (64.6%) came from Facebook. When comparing Facebook with a 7-day radio spot in the same time period, 48 radio spots were launched; resulting in nine inquiries with eventually five potential candidates and two consents.ConclusionTargeted social media was a successful and efficient strategy to recruit hypertensive subjects.
Project description:Online recruitment via social media for health-related research is increasing. Metrics regarding social media recruitment may increase its use in this field. This study evaluates the feasibility of recruiting individuals with a smoking history through targeted advertising on Facebook for a randomized study focused on lung cancer screening. Individuals completed eligibility questions and were randomized to one of two groups. We analyzed advertisement reach and response patterns, advertisement cost, data integrity and sample representativeness. The advertisement was active for 34 days and resulted in 2111 unique clicks on the survey link. Four hundred thirty-three eligibility entries were collected, and 61 entries were excluded due to failure to correctly answer the data integrity check. Two hundred eighty-two participants met eligibility criteria and were randomized, 191 participants completed questionnaires and 10 entries were subsequently excluded due to a failed attention check. Recruitment utilizing targeted advertising on Facebook is an effective and efficient strategy for health-related research.
Project description:BackgroundException from informed consent (EFIC) allows clinician scientists to perform much needed emergency research. Obtaining this exception, however, requires many meetings with community groups for consultation, which can make the process time-consuming and expensive. We aim to determine the impact of using social media in lieu of some community meetings in an effort to obtain an EFIC.Materials and methodsAn economic analysis of four randomized clinical trials was performed. Costs were conservatively estimated using personnel costs, social media costs, and adjusted to 2016 US dollars. People were considered reached if they attended a community meeting or were directed to the study website by social media and spent ≥1 min.ResultsThe Early Whole Blood study required 14 meetings, reached 272 people, and cost $8260 ($30/person reached). The Pragmatic, Randomized Optimal Platelet and Plasma Ratios study required 14 meetings, reached 260 people, and cost $7479 overall ($29/person reached). The Prehospital Tranexamic Acid Use for Traumatic Brain Injury study required 12 meetings, reached 198 people, and cost $6340 ($32/person reached). Only the damage control laparotomy trial utilized social media in lieu of some community meetings. The damage control laparotomy trial required six meetings at which 137 people were reached. The $1000 social media campaign reached 229 people. The cost was $3977 overall and $11/person reached.ConclusionsIncluding a social media campaign during the EFIC process increased the number of potential patients reached and reduced total and per person costs reached costs. Obtaining an EFIC for future emergency clinical trials may be facilitated by the inclusion of a social media campaign.
Project description:Despite a plethora of research, the link between digital technology use and psychological distress among young adults remains inconclusive. Findings in this area are typically undermined by methodological limitations related to measurement, study design, and statistical analysis. Addressing these limitations, we examined the prospective, within-person associations between three aspects of objectively-measured digital technology use (smartphone use duration and frequency; social media use duration) and three aspects of psychological distress (depression, anxiety, and social isolation) among a sample of young adults (N = 384). Across 81 different model specifications, we found that most within-person prospective effects between digital technology use and psychological distress were statistically non-significant and all were very small-even the largest effects were unlikely to register a meaningful impact on a person's psychological distress. In post hoc subgroup analyses, we found scant evidence for the claim that digital technology use is more harmful for women and/or younger people.
Project description:PurposeOur objective is to pilot an advertisement-driven sampling procedure among African American (AA) breast cancer survivors living in Maryland. These pilot study methods will inform a future population-based study of AA breast cancer survivors at high risk of poor outcomes due to biological differences and social inequities.MethodsThis cross-sectional study utilizes an innovative, social media-based advertisement campaign with an associated social media study page to recruit 100 AA breast cancer survivors. Participants are biologically female, aged 18 and older, identify as AA/Black, have a diagnosis of breast cancer, and reside in Maryland. A preset "Audience" was created via Meta (formerly Facebook) to automatically target potential interest in the online study via geolocation and public social media interests (estimated range = 101,000 women). Eligible participants complete an online survey including demographic and clinical characteristics, cancer screening, healthcare access, and utilization, COVID-19 impact, quality of doctor-patient communication, and preferences for future study participation.ResultsRecruitment began on 5 January 2022 and remains ongoing. As of 7 June 2002: 124 completed the screener, 110/124 (88.7%) consented passively, 24/110 (21.8%) started but did not complete survey, 86/110 (78.1%) completed the survey.ConclusionsResults from this study will inform a statewide multilevel prospective population-based study to improve health behaviors, disease management, and self-efficacy of chronic disease management among AA breast cancer survivors.