A videogame intervention for tobacco product use prevention in adolescents.

Abstract

PURPOSE\nThis pilot study evaluated the short-term effects of an interactive videogame on changing adolescent knowledge, beliefs and risk perceptions, and intentions to use e-cigarettes, cigarettes, and other tobacco products. A secondary aim was to evaluate players game experience.\n\n\nMETHODS\nParticipants (N\u202f=\u202f80 11-14\u202fyear olds) were recruited from 7 community-based afterschool programs in New Haven, Connecticut and Los Angeles, California. The design was a single group pre-post design with replication. A pre-test survey was administered that included demographic variables and knowledge, risk perceptions, beliefs, and intentions to use e-cigarettes, cigarettes, and other tobacco products. An interactive videogame focusing on risky tobacco use situations was subsequently played in four 60-min sessions over a four-week period, followed by a post-test survey. Analyses included paired t-tests of pre-post videogame change, regression analyses, and path analyses testing mediational effects of beliefs and risk perceptions on the relationship between knowledge and intentions.\n\n\nRESULTS\nThe videogame changed knowledge of e-cigarettes and other tobacco products (p s\u202f<\u202f0.001), risk perceptions of cigarettes and e-cigarettes (p\u202f<\u202f.01 and p\u202f<\u202f.001, respectively), and beliefs about e-cigarettes and other tobacco products (p s\u202f<\u202f0.05), but not intentions. Older adolescents reported greater e-cigarette knowledge and risk perceptions (p s\u202f<\u202f0.05), and females reported greater risk perception of cigarettes (p\u202f<\u202f.05). Beliefs mediated the relationship between knowledge and intentions to use e-cigarettes (indirect effect p\u202f<\u202f.05).\n\n\nCONCLUSION\nResults suggest that brief exposure (4\u202fh over 4\u202fweeks) to a videogame focused on changing knowledge and attitudes towards tobacco products may have a promising effect on preventing risk for early adolescent tobacco product use, particularly for e-cigarettes.