NCT07406529

Fostering Prosocial Preventive Behaviours Through Awe

Fostering Prosocial Behaviours Against Infectious Diseases Through Awe: A Randomized Controlled Trial

• Status: Recruiting
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 456 (estimated)
• Sponsor: The University of Hong Kong · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

The goal of this randomized control trial is to investigate the impact pf awe on prosocial preventive behaviours against infectious diseases among adults from Hong Kong, Singapore, and ten major cities in Mainland China (Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Chongqing, Chengdu, Wuhan, Xi'an, Nanjing). The main questions it aims to answer are: * Does experiencing awe increase adults' intentions to engage in prosocial preventive behaviours against infectious diseases, including vaccination, mask wearing, and social distancing? * Does the impact vary across three research sites?

Detailed description

This study will be conducted as a nested sub-study within a main longitudinal study implemented online. The baseline assessment of the longitudinal study was conducted between October and November 2025. Participants who agreed to be recontacted will be invited to join the randomized controlled trial (RCT) approximately four months after the baseline assessment, in February-March 2026. At that time, participants will be randomized in a 1:1 ratio into either the intervention or control group.

Conditions

• Infectious Diseases

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
BEHAVIORAL	Awe intervention	The intervention is a three-step mini game named Hidden Picture Puzzle designed to induce the feeling of awe. In the game, participants will first see a picture of nature covered by six opaque blocks. They will be asked to guess the content of the picture. After making their choice, participants will be instructed to click the six blocks to gradually uncover the picture. Once all six blocks are removed, the full image will be revealed. In the final step, participants will be instructed to imagine themselves in the scene and describe their feelings by selecting the word from a provided list. To ensure that participants will have sufficient time to complete the imagination tasks, they will be required to pause for at least 15s before proceeding to indicate their immediate feeling. Each participant will complete four rounds of this mini game, each with a different picture.
BEHAVIORAL	Neutral imagination	For the control group, the mini game Hidden Picture Puzzle will also follow a three-step format, identical in structure to the intervention condition. However, the images provided will depict everyday objects (e.g., a bottle) rather than nature scenes. Similarly, when participants are asked to guess the content of the picture. After the participants finish uncovering the pictures, they will be asked to imagine their interaction with these daily objects and describe the features of the objects by selecting a word from a provided list. As in the intervention group, participants in the control group will complete four rounds of the mini game, each with a different image.

Timeline

• Start date: 2025-10-27
• Primary completion: 2026-03-31
• Completion: 2026-10-31
• First posted: 2026-02-12
• Last updated: 2026-02-27

Locations

1 site across 1 country: Hong Kong