title: Efficacy of a Web-based computer-tailored smoking prevention intervention for Dutch adolescents: randomized controlled trial.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Preventing smoking initiation among adolescents is crucial to reducing tobacco-caused death and disease. This study focuses on the effectiveness of a Web-based computer-tailored smoking prevention intervention aimed at adolescents.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The intent of the study was to describe the intervention characteristics and to show the effectiveness and results of a randomized controlled trial. We hypothesized that the intervention would prevent smoking initiation among Dutch secondary school students aged 10-20 years and would have the largest smoking prevention effect among the age cohort of 14-16 years, as smoking uptake in that period is highest.
  
  
  METHODS
  The intervention consisted of a questionnaire and fully automated computer-tailored feedback on intention to start smoking and motivational determinants. A total of 89 secondary schools were recruited via postal mail and randomized into either the computer-tailored intervention condition or the control condition. Participants had to complete a Web-based questionnaire at baseline and at 6-month follow-up. Data on smoking initiation were collected from 897 students from these schools. To identify intervention effects, multilevel logistic regression analyses were conducted using multiple imputation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Smoking initiation among students aged 10-20 years was borderline significantly lower in the experimental condition as compared to the control condition 6 months after baseline (OR 0.25, 95% CI 0.05-1.21, P=.09). Additional analyses of the data for the 14-16 year age group showed a significant effect, with 11.5% (24/209) of the students in the control condition reporting initiation compared to 5.7% (10/176) in the experimental condition (OR 0.22, 95% CI 0.05-1.02, P=.05). No moderation effects were found regarding gender and educational level.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The findings of this study suggest that computer-tailored smoking prevention programs are a promising way of preventing smoking initiation among adolescents for at least 6 months, in particular among the age cohort of 14-16 years. Further research is needed to focus on long-term effects.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  International Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number (ISRCTN): 77864351; http://www.controlled-trials.com/ISRCTN77864351 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6BSLKSTm5).
authors.affiliation: sdejosselindejong@trimbos.nl.
authors.forename: Sanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: de Josselin de Jong
authors.forename: Math
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Candel
authors.forename: Dewi
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Segaar
authors.forename: Henricus-Paul
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Cremers
authors.forename: Hein
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: de Vries
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D034742:Electronic Mail; D005246:Feedback; D005260:Female; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D008297:Male; D009426:Netherlands; D000074606:Smoking Prevention; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Internet; Web-based intervention; adolescents; computer tailoring; randomized controlled trial; smoking initiation; smoking prevention