Evaluating the effectiveness and user experience of a dietary assessment app for Dutch adolescents
| ISRCTN | ISRCTN46230386 |
|---|---|
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN46230386 |
| Secondary identifying numbers | 2022-13477 |
- Submission date
- 27/05/2024
- Registration date
- 05/06/2024
- Last edited
- 08/10/2024
- Recruitment status
- No longer recruiting
- Overall study status
- Ongoing
- Condition category
- Nutritional, Metabolic, Endocrine
Plain English summary of protocol
Background and study aims
Self-reported dietary intake data has played a key role in many breakthroughs in nutrition and health research. Nevertheless, dietary assessment is challenging due to various potential sources of error. Assessing dietary intake in adolescents is particularly difficult due to irregular eating habits, meal skipping, dining out, and parent or peer influences resulting in misreporting. Adolescents’ receptiveness to technology offers new opportunities for dietary assessment amid the rapidly evolving tech landscape. In response, an innovative smartphone app (Traqq®) was developed for more flexible and easier dietary assessment than conventional tools. Evaluation studies of Traqq® in Dutch adults have shown successful results, but its suitability for other target populations requires further investigation. This study aims to evaluate Traqq®’s dietary assessment accuracy and usability and user perspectives among Dutch adolescents aged 12-18 years.
Who can participate?
Dutch adolescents aged 12 to 18 years old
What does the study involve?
At the start, participants complete a demographic questionnaire. The study lasts 4 weeks during which participants self-report food and beverage intake on 6 random non-consecutive days with 4 days via Traqq® and twice via interviewer-administered 24-hour recalls. After the 4-week study period, participants are invited to complete a Food Frequency Questionnaire and an online evaluation questionnaire. At the end of the study, a subgroup of participants will be asked for in-depth interviews. Finally, a new group will be invited to participate in co-creation sessions.
We do the following investigations and measurements:
Participants complete a number of questionnaires. The questions are about:
1. Demographic data (i.e. sex, age, education, etc) and lifestyle (sleep, diet, exercise/activities)
2. Evaluation questionnaire (i.e. ease of use, convenience, perceived reporting burden, perceived accuracy, likelihood of future use, and overall experience)
3. Food frequency questionnaire (i.e. dietary intake of the past month)
These questionnaires provide information about general characteristics, usability and experience of Traqq® and habitual diet.
Participants complete a number of recall days:
1. Participants report their dietary intake using Traqq® for 4 days
2. Participants are interviewed twice for a 24-hour recall
A subsample of participants will be asked to participate in an in-depth interview about the usability and experience of Traqq®, which will take about 40 minutes.
At the end of the study, a new group of participants will be asked to participate in co-creation sessions to further explore the usability and features of the Traqq® app.
What are the possible benefits and risks of participating?
The researchers do not expect any side effects or complications from participating in the study. Participants will fill out several questionnaires, report their dietary intake, and participate in an interview. While there are no direct benefits to participants, their involvement will contribute to valuable research.
Where is the study run from?
Wageningen University (Netherlands)
When is the study starting and how long is it expected to run for?
January 2022 to December 2025
Who is funding the study?
Wageningen University & Research (Netherlands)
Who is the main contact?
Elske Brouwer-Brolsma, elske.brouwer-brolsma@wur.nl
Contact information
Public, Scientific, Principal Investigator
Helix
Stippeneng 4
Wageningen
6708 WE
Netherlands
 ORCID ID |
0000-0002-6829-5090 |
|---|---|
| Phone | +31 (0)317480100 |
| elske.brouwer-brolsma@wur.nl |
Study information
| Study design | Observational single-centre mixed-method study |
|---|---|
| Primary study design | Observational |
| Secondary study design | Mixed-method study |
| Study setting(s) | Home, School |
| Study type | Other |
| Participant information sheet | 45532_PIS_12to15_V1_19Jan22.pdf |
| Scientific title | Traqq®-Z: evaluating the accuracy, usability, and user perspectives of an ecological momentary dietary assessment app among Dutch adolescents (ages 12-18 years) |
| Study acronym | Traqq-Z |
| Study objectives | This study hypothesizes that integrating user-centered design principles into the development of a dietary assessment tool for Dutch adolescents will enhance both its accuracy and user compliance. |
| Ethics approval(s) | Ethics approval not required |
| Ethics approval additional information | The research participants are not subjected to Medical Scientific Research Involving Human Subjects Act (WMO)-mandated actions and no WMO-mandated conduct is imposed on them. |
| Health condition(s) or problem(s) studied | Dietary intake in adolescents |
| Intervention | Dietary intake is self-reported using Traqq® over a 2-week period, including four random (school)days. Two days involve repeated 2-hour recalls, and 2 days involve repeated 4-hour recalls. Two interviewer-administered 24-hour recalls and a Food Frequency Questionnaire are used as dietary reference methods. Traqq®’s usability is evaluated using the System Usability Scale and an evaluation questionnaire about experiences and interactions with the repeated short recalls and Traqq® app. Participants are interviewed to explore user perspectives. The next steps involve co-creation sessions to gather further user insights and preferences, and guide customization. |
| Intervention type | Other |
| Primary outcome measure | Food and beverage intake is assessed using the smartphone-based 2-hour recall and 4-hour recall method using Traqq®, and the interviewer-administered 24-hour recalls are used as a reference method, over a 4-week study period. |
| Secondary outcome measures | 1. Baseline data assessed using a demographic questionnaire at week 1 2. Evaluation questionnaire about usability assessed using the System Usability Scale at week 5 2. Dietary intake as a reference method assessed using the Food Frequency Questionnaire at week 5 3. User experiences and preferences assessed using in-depth-interviews after the study period 4. User experiences and preferences assessed using co-creation sessions after the in-depth-interviews |
| Overall study start date | 03/01/2022 |
| Completion date | 31/12/2025 |
Eligibility
| Participant type(s) | Healthy volunteer |
|---|---|
| Age group | Child |
| Lower age limit | 12 Years |
| Upper age limit | 18 Years |
| Sex | Both |
| Target number of participants | 100 |
| Total final enrolment | 102 |
| Key inclusion criteria | 1. Aged 12-18 years old 2. Able to speak and read Dutch 3. Willingness to maintain current dietary habits for the duration of the study 4. Own a smartphone with an internet plan 5. User of an email address |
| Key exclusion criteria | 1. Visually impaired 2. Currently participating in another research study |
| Date of first enrolment | 01/02/2022 |
| Date of final enrolment | 30/09/2022 |
Locations
Countries of recruitment
- Netherlands
Study participating centre
Wageningen
6708 WE
Netherlands
Sponsor information
University/education
Helix
Stippeneng 4
Wageningen
6708 WE
Netherlands
| Phone | +31 (0)317480100 |
|---|---|
| office.hn@wur.nl | |
| Website | https://www.wur.nl/ |
"ROR" |
https://ror.org/04qw24q55 |
Funders
Funder type
University/education
Government organisation / Local government
- Alternative name(s)
- Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen University, WUR
- Location
- Netherlands
Results and Publications
| Intention to publish date | 31/12/2026 |
|---|---|
| Individual participant data (IPD) Intention to share | Yes |
| IPD sharing plan summary | Available on request |
| Publication and dissemination plan | Main results will be published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at scientific conferences or symposia. |
| IPD sharing plan | The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study will be available upon request from Elske Brouwer-Brolsma (elske.brouwer-brolsma@wur.nl) |
Study outputs
| Output type | Details | Date created | Date added | Peer reviewed? | Patient-facing? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Participant information sheet | 12 to 15 years version 1 |
19/01/2022 | 05/06/2024 | No | Yes |
| Participant information sheet | 16 to 18 years version 1 |
19/01/2022 | 05/06/2024 | No | Yes |
| Participant information sheet | Parent/guardian version 1 |
19/01/2022 | 05/06/2024 | No | Yes |
Additional files
- 45532_PIS_V1_19Jan22.pdf
- Parent/guardian
- 45532_PIS_16to18_V1_19Jan22.pdf
- 16 to 18 years
- 45532_PIS_12to15_V1_19Jan22.pdf
- 12 to 15 years
Editorial Notes
08/10/2024: The following changes were made to the study record:
1. The overall study end date was changed from 21/09/2024 to 31/12/2025.
2. The intention to publish date was changed from 31/12/2024 to 31/12/2026.
28/05/2024: Study's existence confirmed by METC Oost-Nederland.
