Attitude to Health, Health Behavior, Pollution Related Respiratory Disorder
Conditions
Brief summary
The BREATHE (Behavioral Research of Environment and Air Pollution Through Education) study is a pilot randomized control trial comparing the efficacy of a classroom-based intervention to no intervention in helping middle-school students understand and make behavioral decisions about air pollution. This study is designed to evaluate the effectiveness of the classroom-based intervention on knowledge of air pollution, understanding of air pollution sources, and behavioral choices made to reduce both contributions to air pollution and personal exposure to air pollution. It has been well established that pollution is a racial and economic issue. Low-income areas with populations of predominantly people of color tend to be those with the highest rates of pollution and the largest particulate exposure. Creation of and exposure to this pollution is a key issue for the health of inhabitants of these areas, and of those in the broader surrounding areas. By developing, and assessing the effectiveness of, the investigators hope that the BREATHE study will give the investigators insights into how to better combat this higher exposure and reduce the health risks for those in high pollution areas. The study will take place in 4 visits over a period of 12 months. The hypothesis is that the classroom-based intervention will be effective in leading to behaviors that will reduce exposure to air pollution.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALAir Pollution Education
Students are presented with a one-hour interactive session on air pollution.
OTHERNon-Air Pollution Education
Students are presented with a one-hour interactive session on vaccines.
Sponsors
University of California, San Francisco
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
SINGLE (Subject)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
13 Years to 15 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* Ability to read, write, and understand English at a middle school level * Willing to participate in follow up visits
Exclusion criteria
* Learning disabilities such as autism * Moving out of the area in the next 6 months * Inability to complete the questionnaires
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Behavior Change Assessed by Questionnaires | Assessed immediately after intervention, and at 3 months, 6 months, and 12 months | Change in Future Behavior as it Relates to Personal Choices and Support for Policies and Regulations |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Improvement in Understanding Assessed by Questionnaires | Assessed immediately after intervention, and at 3 months, 6 months, and 12 months | Improvement in Understanding of Air Pollution and Its Public Health Ramification |
Countries
United States
Contacts
PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATORMehrdad Arjomandi, MD
University of California, San Francisco
Outcome results
None listed