Testing a Measurement Feedback App to Improve Data Quality, Supervision & Outcomes in Behavioral Health

Not Applicable

Not yet recruiting

• Conditions: Autism; Challenging Behavior; ADHD; Oppositional Defiant Disorder

• Registration Number: NCT07042347
• Lead Sponsor: University of Pennsylvania

Brief Summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to test whether a smartphone-based data collection and feedback application ("Footsteps") improves the quality of behavioral data collected by one-to-one aides and leads to better youth mental health outcomes in school-aged youth (ages 4-17) who receive one-to-one support in schools.

The main questions it aims to answer are:

1. Does the Footsteps app improve aides' data collection quality (i.e., consistency, timeliness, and completeness)?

2. Does Footsteps use lead to improved youth behavioral health outcomes (e.g., SDQ, YTP, GAS scores)?

3. Does Footsteps improve communication and supervision processes between aides and clinical supervisors?

Researchers will compare aides using Footsteps to those using a "data collection only" control app to see if Footsteps leads to higher quality data collection, enhanced supervisory communication, and better youth outcomes.

Participants will:

* Use either Footsteps or a control app to record de-identified data on one client's behaviors and skills over 12 weeks

* Complete biweekly online surveys about data collection experiences, youth progress, and aide-supervisor communication

* Participate in a virtual intake and post-trial meeting

* (For a subset) Participate in a 30-45 minute qualitative interview about their experience using the app

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Study First Submitted: 2025-06-12
• Study First Submitted QC: 2025-06-24
• Study First Posted: 2025-06-29
• Status Verified: 2025-07
• Last Update Submitted: 2025-07-16
• Last Update Posted: 2025-07-17
• Study Start: 2025-08-25
• Primary Completion: 2028-06-30
• Study Completion: 2028-06-30

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: NOT_YET_RECRUITING
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 200

Inclusion Criteria

• Aides must be employed by a community behavior health agency in Philadelphia or one of its surrounding counties
• and be working with at least one client in school who meets the following criteria: 1) between 4-17 years, 2) has a diagnosis associated with a challenging behavior (e.g., autism spectrum disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiant disorder) as indicated on their treatment plan, and 3) receiving 1:1 aide support.
• Supervisors must be employed by a community behavior health agency and supervise a participating aide. The investigators will recruit supervisors in dyads and not triads (i.e., no supervisors with two [or more] aides) to ensure there are 30 supervisor-aide dyads in total).

Exclusion Criteria

• Aides who participated in the pilot trial of the Footsteps will be excluded from participating to recruit a sample naïve to Footsteps and the control app.

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: PARALLEL

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire total score	Assessed monthly (Baseline; Weeks 4, 8, and 12)	A behavioral screening tool used to assess psychological attributes in children and adolescents, leading to a total score of 0 to 40. A higher total score indicates greater difficulties in emotional and behavioral functioning, while lower scores suggest fewer difficulties.
Data collection consistency	Assessed throughout 12-week trial	an aggregate of the numbers of intervals scheduled, and the numbers of those intervals in which data was entered (% real time data)
Data collection timeliness	Assessed throughout 12-week trial	for intervals in which data was entered, the time lag between occurrence and data entry

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Goal Attainment Scaling	Assessed biweekly, at baseline through 12-week trial	A method for measuring progress toward a goal, using a 5-point scale from -2 to +2. This scale helps quantify how well a goal was achieved, whether it was under-achieved, met, or over-achieved. Goals identified during intake meeting.
Data collection completeness	Assessed throughout 12-week trial	intervals classified as complete or incomplete according to whether the aide collected their planned metrics as required by their agency (% goals targeted)
Youth Top Problems	Assessed biweekly, at baseline through 12-week trial	Top problems identified during intake meeting. Severity of each problem is rated from 0 (not a problem) to 4 (a very big problem). Severity ratings can be tracked for each problem individually or as an overall mean severity score created by averaging ratings from the same informant at the same measurement occasion

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

University of Pennsylvania; 🇺🇸 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States