Completion of massive open online course improved knowledge about traumatic brain injury globally

The Understanding Traumatic Brain Injury Massive Open Online Course (TBI MOOC) was developed to increase TBI knowledge and reduce misconceptions of TBI in the community.

This study assessed participant knowledge of TBI across three domains: 1. Perceptions of concussion, 2. Emotional and Behavioral changes, and 3. Recovery after TBI prior to and after completing the March 2023 iteration of the Understanding TBI MOOC using a modified version of the Common Misconceptions about TBI survey.

Participants (n = 903) who completed both pre- and post-course surveys had lower baseline knowledge scores about Recovery after TBI, than scores for Perceptions of concussion and Emotional and behavioral changes. Completion of the Understanding TBI MOOC led to an increase in overall survey scores and when broken down into sub-scales regardless of participant demographics or experiences.

The Understanding TBI MOOC improved survey scores across all demographics and experiences indicating that the MOOC is an effective tool to improve knowledge about TBI in the community.