Video Game Intervention for Sexual Risk Reduction in Minority Adolescents: Randomized Controlled Trial

Area of Science:

• Adolescent Health
• Digital Health Interventions
• Sexual Health Education

Background:

• Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disproportionately affects minority youth, necessitating effective interventions.
• There is a need for innovative approaches to decrease HIV sexual risk among adolescents.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate an engaging, theory-based digital health intervention using an interactive video game.
• To determine the intervention's impact on sexual health outcomes in adolescents.

Main Methods:

• Randomized controlled trial with 333 adolescents (ages 11-14) playing an experimental or control video game for 6 weeks.
• Primary outcome: delay of vaginal/anal intercourse initiation. Secondary outcomes: sexual health attitudes, knowledge, and intentions.
• Assessments conducted at 6 weeks, and 3, 6, and 12 months post-intervention.

Main Results:

• No significant difference in the delay of intercourse initiation between groups at 12 months.
• The intervention group showed improved sexual health attitudes (P=.04) and knowledge (P<.001) overall.
• Improvements in attitudes were noted in boys and younger participants; knowledge improved across all subgroups.

Conclusions:

• An interactive video game intervention effectively enhances sexual health attitudes and knowledge in minority adolescents.
• These positive effects on sexual health awareness are sustained for at least 12 months.
• Digital health games offer a promising avenue for improving adolescent sexual health outcomes.