None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
A randomised controlled trial will be conducted, using the online Writing for Health program, to examine the efficacy of Internet-based writing exercises focusing on benefit-finding in diabetes, versus an active control condition, in reducing diabetes distress and increasing perceived benefits of living with diabetes (primary outcomes) and reducing symptoms of depression and anxiety and increasing diabetes self-care and self-reported general health (secondary outomes). Adults with type 1 or type 2 diabetes visiting the Writing for Health website, in response to advertisements, will be invited to participate in the study. Following informed consent and an online screening procedure, participants will be randomly allocated to one of two interventions: i) Benefit-finding: Writing about any positive thoughts of feelings about experiences with diabetes; or ii) Use of time: Writing about how time has been spent this day and will be spent next week. Both interventions in the Writing for Health program involve writing online for 15 minutes once a day, for three consecutive days. Participants will complete online questionnaires at pre-intervention, during the program, post-intervention, and at one and three month follow-ups.
Interventions
Participants will be randomly assigned to one of two web-based interventions on the Writing for Health online program:
Arm 1) Benefit-finding writing: Participants are asked to write online about any positive thoughts and feelings about their experience with diabetes.
Arm 2) Use of time writing (active control condition): Participants are asked to write in detail about how their time was spent that day and plans for how their time will be spent the following day and week.
Both interventions in
Participants will be randomly assigned to one of two web-based interventions on the Writing for Health online program: Arm 1) Benefit-finding writing: Participants are asked to write online about any positive thoughts and feelings about their experience with diabetes. Arm 2) Use of time writing (active control condition): Participants are asked to write in detail about how their time was spent that day and plans for how their time will be spent the following day and week. Both interventions involve participants writing online, on the Internet-based Writing for Health program, for 15 minutes once a day, for three consecutive days. Participants are asked to rate their current mood online immediately before and after each online writing session. Participants will be sent automated emails reminding them to log on when they are due to complete a writing session or an online follow-up questionnaire. The Writing for Health program involves an online information and consent procedure, online screening questionnaires with automatic feedback and online registration for eligible participants who provide informed consent to participate. Participants will complete online questionnaires at pre-program, during the program, post-program and at one-month and three-month follow-up. Participants in both arms are provided with feedback on their score categories (eg ‘mild’) on measures of symptoms of depression and anxiety, at baseline, one-month and three-month follow-up.
Sponsors
Faces in the Street: Urban Mental Health Research Institute, St Vincent’s Hospital
Study design
Allocation
Randomised controlled trial
Intervention model
Parallel
Primary purpose
Treatment
Masking
Open (masking not used)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
Participants must be aged 18 years or older, have ever received a diagnosis of type 1 or type 2 diabetes, live in Australia, have access to the Internet, provide informed consent and be able to register online using an email address.
Exclusion criteria
Have received a diagnosis of a psychotic or bipolar disorder or dementia; current significant symptoms of depression (scoring 10 or above on the PHQ-9) or anxiety (scoring 8 or above on the GAD-7); current suicidal ideation; history of self-harm or suicide attempt; current psychological therapy; difficulty reading or writing in English; inability to type for 15 minutes
Outcome results
None listed