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A videogame intervention for tobacco product use prevention in adolescents.


ABSTRACT:

Purpose

This pilot study evaluated the short-term effects of an interactive videogame on changing adolescent knowledge, beliefs and risk perceptions, and intentions to use e-cigarettes, cigarettes, and other tobacco products. A secondary aim was to evaluate players' game experience.

Methods

Participants (N = 80 11-14 year olds) were recruited from 7 community-based afterschool programs in New Haven, Connecticut and Los Angeles, California. The design was a single group pre-post design with replication. A pre-test survey was administered that included demographic variables and knowledge, risk perceptions, beliefs, and intentions to use e-cigarettes, cigarettes, and other tobacco products. An interactive videogame focusing on risky tobacco use situations was subsequently played in four 60-min sessions over a four-week period, followed by a post-test survey. Analyses included paired t-tests of pre-post videogame change, regression analyses, and path analyses testing mediational effects of beliefs and risk perceptions on the relationship between knowledge and intentions.

Results

The videogame changed knowledge of e-cigarettes and other tobacco products (p's < 0.001), risk perceptions of cigarettes and e-cigarettes (p < .01 and p < .001, respectively), and beliefs about e-cigarettes and other tobacco products (p's < 0.05), but not intentions. Older adolescents reported greater e-cigarette knowledge and risk perceptions (p's < 0.05), and females reported greater risk perception of cigarettes (p < .05). Beliefs mediated the relationship between knowledge and intentions to use e-cigarettes (indirect effect p < .05).

Conclusion

Results suggest that brief exposure (4 h over 4 weeks) to a videogame focused on changing knowledge and attitudes towards tobacco products may have a promising effect on preventing risk for early adolescent tobacco product use, particularly for e-cigarettes.

SUBMITTER: Pentz MA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6358489 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

A videogame intervention for tobacco product use prevention in adolescents.

Pentz Mary Ann MA   Hieftje Kimberly D KD   Pendergrass Tyra M TM   Brito Stephanie A SA   Liu Mengyu M   Arora Trisha T   Tindle Hilary A HA   Krishnan-Sarin Suchitra S   Fiellin Lynn E LE  

Addictive behaviors 20181114


<h4>Purpose</h4>This pilot study evaluated the short-term effects of an interactive videogame on changing adolescent knowledge, beliefs and risk perceptions, and intentions to use e-cigarettes, cigarettes, and other tobacco products. A secondary aim was to evaluate players' game experience.<h4>Methods</h4>Participants (N = 80 11-14 year olds) were recruited from 7 community-based afterschool programs in New Haven, Connecticut and Los Angeles, California. The design was a single group pre-post de  ...[more]

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