Evaluation of a school-based alcohol education program for secondary school students in Belgium
| ISRCTN | ISRCTN12322703 |
|---|---|
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN12322703 |
| Secondary identifying numbers | SHW_2022_127_1 |
- Submission date
- 28/03/2025
- Registration date
- 28/03/2025
- Last edited
- 28/03/2025
- Recruitment status
- Recruiting
- Overall study status
- Ongoing
- Condition category
- Other
Plain English summary of protocol
Background and study aims
Drinking alcohol among adolescents is a worldwide public health concern. Also in Belgium, adolescents drink alcohol frequently. And if they drink, they often do so heavily. Although the age limit for beer and wine is 16 years old, the average age at which individuals start drinking is 14 years old. Because alcohol use has many risks for the health of adolescents, both in the short and the long term, effective preventive measures are needed. Therefore, in this study a school-based educational lecture on alcohol for secondary school students in Flanders (Belgium) will be developed and evaluated. The study aims to raise the awareness of secondary school students about the risks of alcohol and to reduce problematic alcohol use among them.
Who can participate?
Secondary schools that are interested can apply for the educational lecture. The lecture is intended for third- and fourth-grade students (14- and 15-year-olds), both from regular and vocational education. The intervention is a universal prevention intervention, so all students from the participating classrooms can participate.
What does the study involve?
All schools that want to participate will receive the intervention. Therefore, no control schools will be included. Measurements will be conducted among the participating students before and after the intervention. These measurements are surveys questioning alcohol use, social norms regarding alcohol use, opinions about the intervention and the perceived effect of the intervention.
What are the possible benefits and risks of participating?
Benefits: The intervention might reduce the (problematic) alcohol use among participants or postpone the start of drinking alcohol.
Risks: There are no risks associated with participating in the intervention.
Where is the study run from?
University of Antwerp (Belgium)
When is the study starting and how long is it expected to run for?
January 2023 to December 2025
Who is funding the study?
University of Antwerp (Belgium)
Who is the main contact?
Prof. Nina Hermans, ggameproject@uantwerpen.be
Contact information
Public, Scientific
Universiteitsplein 1
Wilrijk
2610
Belgium
| Phone | +32 (0)3 265 41 11 |
|---|---|
| hanna.vanroozendaal@uantwerpen.be |
Principal Investigator
Universiteitsplein 1
Wilrijk
2610
Belgium
| Phone | +32 (0)3 265 41 11 |
|---|---|
| ggameproject@uantwerpen.be |
Study information
| Study design | Quasi-experimental study with a pre- and post measurement |
|---|---|
| Primary study design | Interventional |
| Secondary study design | Non randomised study |
| Study setting(s) | School |
| Study type | Prevention |
| Participant information sheet | Not available in web format, please use the contact details to request a participant information sheet |
| Scientific title | Evaluation of a school-based alcohol education program for secondary school students in Belgium to reduce problematic alcohol use |
| Study acronym | GGAME |
| Study objectives | The developed school-based alcohol education lesson will raise the awareness of risks of alcohol among participants and will decrease their alcohol misuse. |
| Ethics approval(s) |
Approved 07/02/2023, University of Antwerp Ethics Committee for the Social Sciences and Humanities (Middelheimlaan 1, Antwerp, 2020, Belgium; +32 (0)3 265 90 63; eashw@uantwerpen.be), ref: SHW_2022_127_1 |
| Health condition(s) or problem(s) studied | Prevention of alcohol misuse among third- and fourth-grade secondary school students of regular and vocational education |
| Intervention | A quasi-experimental design will be used for this study, in which all students at the participating schools in Antwerp/Flanders (Belgium) will be offered the intervention: an education lecture on alcohol. Differences in alcohol use will be measured before and after the intervention within the same population. In this regard, the students serve as their own control. No control schools will be included in the study. Additionally, no randomization will take place: all schools that request the intervention and are willing to participate in the study will be offered the intervention. The education lesson will be taught by four researchers from the University of Antwerp, who are considered experts in the field of youth and alcohol. Secondary students from grades 3 and 4 (mainly 14- and 15-year-olds) from regular or vocational education are eligible for participation. Recruitment will take place via promoting the educational lesson on the University of Antwerp's website on a subpage intended for secondary schools where activities for secondary school students are presented. Additionally, the Department of Communication at the University of Antwerp will spread the information on the intervention in its monthly newsletter to secondary schools. To measure whether the intervention will reduce problematic alcohol use, the primary outcome will be the score on the AUDIT-C questionnaire. Anonymous surveys will be developed for the purpose of this study and will be administered immediately following the educational lesson (T1) and again at follow-up 3 months later (T2). In these surveys, sociodemographic variables will also be questioned, as questions regarding the process evaluation. The intervention effect on the primary outcome will be assessed using Pearson’s chi-squared test for change in the proportion of students below and above the cutoff score on the AUDIT-C score. |
| Intervention type | Behavioural |
| Primary outcome measure | Problematic alcohol use is measured using the AUDIT-C Score (short version of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test) immediately following the educational lesson (T1) and again at follow-up 3 months later (T2) |
| Secondary outcome measures | 1. Subjective self-reported change in alcohol-drinking behaviour measured on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from ‘totally disagree’ to ‘totally agree’ measured at follow-up 3 months later (T2) 2. Subjective effect of the intervention on thinking about own alcohol use, thinking about the alcohol use of people in their surroundings and talking about alcohol use (yes, no, or irrelevant), measured at follow-up 3 months later (T2) |
| Overall study start date | 01/01/2023 |
| Completion date | 31/12/2025 |
Eligibility
| Participant type(s) | Learner/student |
|---|---|
| Age group | Child |
| Lower age limit | 12 Years |
| Upper age limit | 18 Years |
| Sex | Both |
| Target number of participants | 216 |
| Key inclusion criteria | Third- and fourth-grade students from regular or vocational education in secondary schools in Flanders (Belgium) |
| Key exclusion criteria | Participants decline consent, which is the first question of both surveys |
| Date of first enrolment | 22/03/2023 |
| Date of final enrolment | 01/09/2025 |
Locations
Countries of recruitment
- Belgium
Study participating centre
Wilrijk
2610
Belgium
Sponsor information
University/education
Prinsstraat 13
Antwerp
2000
Belgium
| Phone | +32 (0)3 265 41 11 |
|---|---|
| research@uantwerpen.be | |
| Website | https://www.universiteitantwerpen.be |
"ROR" |
https://ror.org/008x57b05 |
Funders
Funder type
University/education
Private sector organisation / Universities (academic only)
- Alternative name(s)
- University of Antwerp, UAntwerp, Universiteit van Antwerpen, Uantwerpen
- Location
- Belgium
Results and Publications
| Intention to publish date | 01/05/2025 |
|---|---|
| Individual participant data (IPD) Intention to share | Yes |
| IPD sharing plan summary | Available on request |
| Publication and dissemination plan | Planned publication(s) in a peer-reviewed journal |
| IPD sharing plan | The dataset generated during and/or analysed during the current study will be available upon reasonable request from Hanna van Roozendaal (ggameproject@uantwerpen.be) |
Editorial Notes
28/03/2025: Study's existence confirmed by the University of Antwerp Ethics Committee for the Social Sciences and Humanities.
