Short, Animated Storytelling (SAS) for Addiction Stigma Reduction

Not Applicable

Not yet recruiting

• Conditions: Social Stigma Towards People With Addiction

• Registration Number: NCT06705205
• Lead Sponsor: Stanford University

Brief Summary

Stigma towards people with addiction is a well-documented problem that negatively impacts help-seeking, treatment and recovery. Social contact with people recovering from addiction can promote empathy and reduce stigma, but social contact is difficult to scale. Short, animated storytelling (SAS) is a novel health communication approach that scales easily because it can leapfrog barriers associated with language, culture, literacy and education levels. This study will investigate if a SAS video intervention can be used to reduce stigma, boost optimism and hope, and increasing empathy towards people with addiction. The study will also explore mechanisms of action of SAS interventions, by measuring the contribution of sound design to the effect of the intervention.

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Study First Submitted: 2024-11-22
• Study First Submitted QC: 2024-11-22
• Study First Posted: 2024-11-26
• Status Verified: 2025-05
• Last Update Submitted: 2025-05-17
• Last Update Posted: 2025-05-20
• Study Start: 2025-07-01
• Primary Completion: 2025-10-30
• Study Completion: 2025-12-30

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: NOT_YET_RECRUITING
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 13500

Inclusion Criteria

• Adults with basic English proficiency between the ages of 18-49

Exclusion Criteria

• None

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: PARALLEL

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Change in Addiction Stigma Scale Score as measured by the Attribution Questionnaire (AQ)	Immediately post-intervention on Day 1 and after two weeks	Participants complete an 18-item shortened version of the validated AQ. The AQ-18 will be scored along a 9-point Likert scale indicating the extent to which participants agree with the item ranging from "not at all" to "very much" with a maximum score of 27 for each 3-item construct. Higher scores indicate greater stigma.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Change in Optimism Scale Score	Immediately post-intervention on Day 1 and after two weeks	Participants complete the Brief García's Interactive Optimism Scale (BIOS-G). The BIOS-G is an instrument designed to assess an individual's level of general optimism towards their life and other people. The scale includes 4 statements for which respondents indicate their level of agreement from 1 ("Of course not") to 4 ("Yes, of course"). Higher scores indicate a greater level of optimism.
Change in Attitude Thermometer Score	Immediately post-intervention on Day 1 and after two weeks	Participants will indicate their warmth towards subject using a self-report stigma thermometer. Using a scale scores from zero to 100, with higher scores indicating more empathy or more favorable attitudes.
Change in Levels of Hope using a visual analogue scale (VAS)	Immediately post-intervention on Day 1 and after two weeks	Participants self-report levels of hope using a VAS, a longstanding, validated tool for assessing related constructs of stress and subjective well-being. The scale goes from zero to 100 and higher scores indicate higher levels of hope.