Digital Rewards and Retention in a M-health App

NCT ID: NCT06883773

Last Updated: 2025-03-19

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: NOT_YET_RECRUITING
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 177 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2025-03-15
• Study Completion Date: 2025-09-01

Brief Summary

Attrition and user engagement are two challenges that eHealth interventions struggle with. Attempts to address this have been previously made through gamification, instructional design and using different types of incentives. Overall, any type of reward, be it non-financial or monetary is better than the controls, but the latter usually produce a greater effect. It is also worth mentioning that having an affective value attached to the reward itself is also important to user retention and engagement. Given the ever-increasing interest in cryptocurrency and its current relevance, the present study - a randomized clinical trial with three arms - aims to compare cryptocurrency to non-monetary rewards regarding their effectiveness in reducing attrition and increasing engagement. In order to do this, a mental-health computerized intervention will be developed, in which the users will have to complete several modules, during which time they will be rewarded either with cryptocurrency, sweepstake rewards (e.g., vouchers), or nothing.

Detailed Description

Albeit effective, eHealth interventions suffer from very high dropout rates. Finding novel ways in which to maximise user retention and engagement in such settings can be beneficial, and exploring cryptocurrency as a potential reward may be worthwhile, since motivation seems to increase as the reward is perceived as more meaningful by the recipient.

The design is experimental, between-subjects, with one independent variable (the type of reward offered) and mental health (e.g., depression, anxiety, stress, and transdiagnostic constructs) as well as engagement and retention outcomes. Thus, three groups will be formed: two in which participants will be enrolled in the modular MOTO intervention and will receive different rewards, and one in which they will not receive any intervention or reward but will be evaluated as part of a waitlist control group. The modular MOTO intervention involves, in addition to the mentioned assessments, the completion of six weekly modules, each focused on specific aspects of mental health and containing exercises that may improve psychological well-being. These modules are automated, requiring no interaction with others (except for communication between participants and research team). Each of these modules contains the following: psychoeducational section(s) that participants must complete; a short test of 5-10 questions after each section to assess understanding of the material; (only for the first two groups); a link where they can obtain their rewards; the exercise corresponding to that module; the evaluation corresponding to that module.

Conditions

Transdiagnostic Psychopathology; Attrition; Engagement; Depression, Anxiety; Stress

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: PREVENTION
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

Crypto reward group

The participants will be enrolled in a weekly, 6 module intervention, which will require them to read psychoeducational materials, complete quizzes regarding those materials, complete the module-specific exercise, and then get rewarded in cryptocurrency. The participants will be assessed before, during and after the intervention.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Multipurpose Online Tool

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

The intervention consists of 6 psychoeducational modules, on the Canvas teaching platform. They are automated, requiring no interaction with others (except for communication between participants and the team). Participants go through the psychoeducational modules, then do the corresponding exercise, and then access their rewards (if they belong to the experimental or comparative groups).

Sweepstakes reward group

The participants will be enrolled in a weekly, 6 module intervention, which will require them to read psychoeducational materials, complete quizzes regarding those materials, complete the module-specific exercise, and then earn the chance to win vouchers for an online store. The participants will be assessed before, during and after the intervention.

Group Type: ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Multipurpose Online Tool

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

The intervention consists of 6 psychoeducational modules, on the Canvas teaching platform. They are automated, requiring no interaction with others (except for communication between participants and the team). Participants go through the psychoeducational modules, then do the corresponding exercise, and then access their rewards (if they belong to the experimental or comparative groups).

Waitlist

The participants will be enrolled on the platform, but only for completing the assessments.

Group Type: OTHER

No intervention

Intervention Type: OTHER

The participants will be assessed but without any intervention

Interventions

Multipurpose Online Tool

The intervention consists of 6 psychoeducational modules, on the Canvas teaching platform. They are automated, requiring no interaction with others (except for communication between participants and the team). Participants go through the psychoeducational modules, then do the corresponding exercise, and then access their rewards (if they belong to the experimental or comparative groups).

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

No intervention

The participants will be assessed but without any intervention

Intervention Type: OTHER

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• English speaking

Exclusion Criteria

-

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 60 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Sponsors

University of Bucharest

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Cezar Giosan

Associate Professor of Psychology

Responsibility Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Locations

University of Bucharest

Bucharest, , Romania

Countries

Romania

Central Contacts

Cezar Giosan, PhD

Role: CONTACT

giosan@outlook.com

+40730908050

Facility Contacts

Cezar Giosan, PhD

Role: primary

giosan@outlook.com

+40730908050

Other Identifiers

DIGITALGAMINGRCT

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id