The Impact of Social Media content on health decisions: Exploring the influence of varying content and information about attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

A randomised online trial evaluating the effect of social media posts about ADHD on medical decision making

Status

Completed

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Interventional

Source

ANZCTR

Registry ID

ACTRN12625000341426

Enrollment

1197

Registered

2025-04-23

Start date

2025-08-11

Completion date

2025-08-25

Last updated

2025-10-27

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

None listed

Brief summary

Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is one of the most discussed health topics on social media, with an increasing rate of individuals self-diagnosing based on online content. However, some of the content consists of misleading or misrepresentative symptom descriptions, which may contribute to misdiagnosis, overidentification, and unnecessary distress. This study aims to examine the impact of different types of ADHD-related TikTok posts (personal anecdotes vs. awareness campaigns) and the accuracy of symptom descriptions (evidence-based vs. misrepresentative) on participants' perceptions, emotions, and self-diagnosis intentions. It is hypothesised that personal anecdotes will evoke higher intentions to self-diagnose, internalized stigma and emotional engagement, but lower intentions to seek an official diagnosis and perceptions of credibility compared to awareness campaigns. Further, content featuring misrepresentative symptoms is hypothesised to lead to higher intention to self-diagnose, stigma, and stronger emotional responses. Interaction effects are anticipated, with personal anecdotes containing misrepresentative symptoms eliciting the highest intention to self-diagnose, stigma, and emotional response, while awareness campaigns containing evidence-based symptoms are expected to result in the highest intention to seek an official diagnosis and credibility. Given the increasing influence of social media on health perceptions and self-diagnosis behaviors, this study will provide valuable insights into how different types of ADHD-related online content affect individuals' understanding and decision-making. The findings can contribute to discussions on responsible health communication, misinformation, and the potential risks of self-diagnosis based on social media content.

Interventions

The aim of this trial is to test and evaluate how different types of messaging (personal anecdotes and awareness campaigns) and different descriptions of symptoms (evidence-based vs misrepresentative) affect participants’ perceptions, emotions and intentions. Participants will be randomly assigned to one of four conditions: (1) a personal anecdote featuring evidence-based symptoms, (2) a personal anecdote featuring misrepresentative symptoms, (3) an awareness campaign featuring evidence-based symptoms (control group), or (4) an awareness campaign featuring misrepresentative symptoms. The study materials consist of TikTok posts designed to mimic real online content, each consisting of 5 slides which will take approximately 1-2 minutes to engage with. The misrepresentative symptoms include generalized or sensationalized descriptions of ADHD symptoms not supported by clinical evidence that are commonly found on social media such as relationship roadblocks, impulsive spending, picking skin, and chewing the inside of one’s cheeks. The evidence-based symptoms include difficulties maintaining attention, excessive fidgeting, frequently losing things, and difficulty waiting one’s turn. The personal anecdote will recount the experience of noticing ADHD symptoms and the benefit of reaching a diagnosis. The awareness campaign will feature a neutral tone with statements about the prevalence of ADHD and how to recognize the signs. The intervention groups will receive the content containing misrepresentative symptoms of ADHD, which are not recognized by medical professionals and may lead to misconceptions or overdiagnosis. Participants will view the assigned content within an online survey hosted on Qualtrics, with Qualtrics analytics being used to monitor adherence to the intervention. After exposure to the stimulus, they will complete a series of outcome measures assessing intention to self-diagnose, intention to seek an official diagnosis, internalized stigma, emotional response and credibility and trust of the information. The total time for participation is estimated to be 10-15 minutes. The intervention materials have been developed based on existing ADHD-related content commonly found on social media platforms and standardized questionnaires.

Study design

Allocation

Randomised controlled trial

Intervention model

Parallel

Primary purpose

Educational / counselling / training

Masking

Blinded (masking used) (Subject, Caregiver)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

All

Age

18 Years to 40 Years

Healthy volunteers

Yes

Inclusion criteria

Adults aged 18-40 years, living in Australia, who have not been formally diagnosed with ADHD or autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and are not currently on treatment for these disorders.

Exclusion criteria

Diagnosed with ADHD or ASD, received treatment for ADHD or ASD

Outcome results