NCT06972667

Interventions to Decrease Health Information Avoidance

Interventions to Decrease Cancer Information Avoidance

• Status: Active Not Recruiting
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 1,500 (estimated)
• Sponsor: State University of New York at Buffalo · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 45 Years – 75 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

Health information avoidance is an overlooked threat to the reach and effectiveness of health communication. To fully realize the benefits of our sizeable investments in health messaging, it is necessary to identify strategies for reducing health information avoidance. The researchers will test a video-based strategy for promoting colorectal cancer screening designed to reduce defensive colorectal cancer information avoidance and increase message reach by increasing engagement among those who would otherwise avoid the message. The researchers will conduct a randomized controlled trial (RCT) comparing the effects of the intervention video to an attentional control video on colorectal cancer screening intentions and uptake.

Detailed description

The study will test the efficacy and mediating mechanisms of brief video interventions including elements demonstrated to be effective in reducing health information avoidance (self-efficacy boosting, humor, calm affect induction). It is expected that the videos to benefit people who typically avoid health information yet still be beneficial for people who do not avoid health information, thus being suitable for dissemination to general audiences. It is hypothesized that the interventions will strengthen intentions to be screened, increase colorectal cancer risk information seeking and increase screening. Following recommended practices, the two intervention arms and the control arm will include multiple versions of the videos to control for actor effects. All intervention videos operationalize the same psychological mechanisms but are delivered by 4 different actors and promote either colonoscopy or stool tests. The 8 parallel intervention and 4 control videos will be treated as random effects. The intervention videos will be tested in members of the Ipsos panel who are not adherent to colorectal cancer screening guidelines, half of whom will be selected because they tend to avoid colorectal cancer information. Effects of the intervention videos will be compared to those of an attentional control video about food safety.

Conditions

• Health Information Avoidance

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
OTHER	Video to promote colonoscopy	This video contains elements designed to engage and persuade people who tend to avoid colorectal cancer information to have a colonoscopy. Psychological elements include self-efficacy boosting, humor, and calming affect induction.
OTHER	Video to promote screening for colorectal cancer with home tests	This video contains elements designed to engage and persuade people who tend to avoid colorectal cancer information to screen for colorectal cancer with a home test. Psychological elements include self-efficacy boosting, humor, and calming affect induction.

Timeline

• Start date: 2025-12-10
• Primary completion: 2026-09-01
• Completion: 2026-09-01
• First posted: 2025-05-15
• Last updated: 2026-02-04

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States