RecruitingACTRN12625000572460

Online single-session interventions to encourage young adults at risk of disordered eating to seek help.

Piloting a single-session intervention to enhance help-seeking in young adults aged 18-25 at risk of disordered eating.

Sponsor

Flinders University

Enrollment

30 participants

Start Date

May 9, 2025

Study Type

Interventional

Conditions

Disordered eating

Summary

This study is a pilot trial testing two brief online interventions for young adults (18-25 years) with high concerns about their weight and body shape. The goal is to see if these single-session interventions (SSIs) are feasible and acceptable, and to explore their effects on mental health and help-seeking attitudes. Participants, who are first-year psychology students at Flinders University, will be randomly assigned to one of two interventions: a help-seeking SSI or a behavioural activation SSI. The help-seeking SSI provides participants with a better understanding of what negative body image is and motivational strategies to promote help-seeking, whereas the behavioural activation SSI aims to improve mood by emphasising the importance of positive action. Participants will complete baseline measures, followed by their allocated single session intervention and post-treatment measures straight after.

Eligibility

Sex: Both males and femalesMin Age: 18 YearssMax Age: 25 Yearss

Plain Language Summary

Simplified for easier understanding

This study is for young adults aged 18 to 25 who are first-year psychology students at Flinders University and have significant concerns about their weight or body shape. Worrying a lot about weight and body image can be an early sign of disordered eating, and most people who struggle with this never seek help. This trial tests two short, one-session online programs designed to either help participants understand what negative body image is and feel more motivated to seek professional support, or to improve their mood through focusing on positive activities. Participants will be randomly assigned to one of the two programs and will complete some questionnaires before and immediately after the single session. The whole process takes place online and in one sitting. Researchers are checking whether these programs are practical to run and whether they show any early signs of helping. You may be eligible if you are a first-year psychology student at Flinders University aged 18 to 25, score high on a questionnaire about weight concerns, and are not currently seeing a professional for eating concerns.

This summary was AI-generated to explain the trial in plain language. It is not medical advice. Always discuss eligibility with your doctor before enrolling in a clinical trial.

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Interventions

30 minute help-seeking single session intervention (SSI). The SSI will be administered online via the Qualtrics survey software. This SSI follows a "learn" and "do" section. The “learn” section of help-seeking SSI provides psychoeducation on negative body image and its consequences, and psychoeducation on the societal pressure to confirm to certain body or appearance standards and the costs associated with pursuing these ideals. The “do” section incorporates activities that encourage participants to identify the benefits of change, fears of change, and responses to fears. Strategies used to monitor adherence to the intervention include a timer on each page (participant must look at page for 10 seconds before they can click proceed) and forced responses (participant must answer questions within the SSI to proceed). There will be five levels of help-seeking resources provided to all participants immediately following their allocated SSI. Engagement will be measured with number of clicks on each resource. If participants do not engage with the level, the task will end, and they will immediately move onto the post-intervention questionnaires. Level 1 will gauge initial interest/awareness by asking participants if they would like to learn about supports available for body image and eating concerns. Level 2 will measure passive engagement by providing a fact sheet with an overview of supports available for eating concerns and body image help. Level 3 will assess moderate engagement, which involves downloading a PDF with helpful self-guided strategies for overcoming negative body image or eating concerns. Level 4 will determine high engagement by asking participants if they would like to learn about support services available on campus for negative body image and eating concerns. Level 5, strong intent to seek help, will provide participants with the option to actively seek help, such as receiving information on how to book an appointment with Flinders University student counselling, downloading a self-referral form for the Flinders University Services for Eating Disorders (FUSED), ringing Butterfly Helpline, or accessing CCI resources.

Locations(1)

SA, Australia

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