Online delivery of a family-based dating violence prevention program for youth who have been exposed to intimate partner violence: Protocol for an acceptability and feasibility study (Preprint)

BACKGROUND Children who are exposed to intimate partner violence (IPV) between caregivers are at increased risk for becoming involved in dating violence during adolescence. Yet, to date, few adolescent dating violence (ADV) prevention programs have been developed for and/or evaluated with IPV-exposed youth. One exception is Moms and Teens for Safe Dates (MTSD), an evidence-based ADV prevention program for IPV-exposed mothers or maternal caregivers (moms) and their teens. MTSD consists of a series of booklets that families complete together in a home that include interactive activities to promote positive family communication and healthy teen relationships. We developed an online-adapted version of the MTSD program, entitled, eMoms and Teens for Safe Dates (eMTSD), to provide a delivery format that may: increase program appeal for digitally oriented teens; lower dissemination costs; lower reading burden for low-literacy participants; and incorporate built in cues and reminders to boost program adherence. OBJECTIVE This is a protocol for a research study that has three main objectives: (1) to assess of the acceptability of eMTSD; (2) to identify the feasibility of the research process, including program adherence and participant recruitment and assessment; and (3) to explore the acceptability, feasibility, and preliminary efficacy of two features —text reminders and the creation of an “action plan” for engaging with the program—that may increase program uptake and completion. METHODS Approximately 80 moms and their teens will be invited to complete eMTSD, which includes six 30-minute online modules, over a 6-week period. Moms will be recruited through community organizations and via social media advertising and will be eligible to participate if they have at least one 12–16-year-old teen living with them, experienced IPV after the teen was born, are not currently living with an abusive partner, and have access to an internet-enabled device. Using a factorial design, enrolled dyads will be randomized to four “adherence support” groups (n=20 dyads per group): (1) text reminders and action planning, (2) text reminders only, (3) action planning only, and (4) no adherence supports. All participants will complete brief online assessments at enrollment, after each module is completed, after the full program is completed, and 12-weeks post enrollment. Program adherence will be tracked using website usage metrics. RESULTS Data collected will be synthesized to assess acceptability of the program and feasibility of study procedures. Exploratory analysis will examine the impacts of adherence supports on program completion levels. In November 2021 ethical approval was received and recruitment was initiated. Data collection is expected to continue until December 2022. CONCLUSIONS Online delivery of a family-based healthy relationships program for IPV-exposed teens may offer a convenient, low-cost, engaging approach to preventing ADV. Findings from the study are expected to guide future research.