title: The SmokefreeTXT (SFTXT) Study: Web and Mobile Data Collection to Evaluate Smoking Cessation for Young Adults.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Text messaging (short message service, SMS) has been shown to be effective in delivering interventions for various diseases and health conditions, including smoking cessation. While there are many published studies regarding smoking cessation text messaging interventions, most do not provide details about the study's operational methods. As a result, there is a gap in our understanding of how best to design studies of smoking cessation text messaging programs.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this paper is to detail the operational methods used to conduct a randomized trial comparing three different versions of the National Cancer Institute's SmokefreeText (SFTXT) program, designed for smokers 18 to 29 years of age. We detail our methods for recruiting participants from the Internet, reducing fraud, conducting online data collection, and retaining panel study participants.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants were recruited through website advertisements and market research online panels. Screening questions established eligibility for the study (eg, 18 to 29 years of age, current smoker). Antifraud measures screened out participants who could not meet the study requirements. After completing a baseline survey, participants were randomized to one of three study arms, which varied by type and timing of text message delivery. The study offered US $20 gift cards as incentives to complete each of four follow-up surveys. Automated email reminders were sent at designated intervals to increase response rates. Researchers also provided telephone reminders to those who had not completed the survey after multiple email reminders. We calculated participation rates across study arms and compared the final sample characteristics to the Current Population Survey to examine generalizability.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Recruitment methods drove 153,936 unique visitors to the SFTXT Study landing page and 27,360 began the screener. Based on the screening questions, 15,462 out of 27,360 responders (56.51%) were eligible to participate. Of the 15,462 who were eligible, 9486 passed the antifraud measures that were implemented; however, 3882 failed to verify their email addresses or cell phone numbers, leaving 5604 who were invited to complete the baseline survey. Of the 5604 who were invited, 4432 completed the baseline survey, but only 4027 were retained for analysis because 405 did not receive the intervention.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although antifraud measures helped to catch participants who failed study requirements and could have biased the data collected, it is possible that the email and cell phone verification check excluded some potentially eligible participants from the study. Future research should explore ways to implement verification methods without risking the loss of so many potential participants.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Clinical Trials.gov NCT01885052; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01885052; (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6iWzcmFdw).
authors.affiliation: RTI International, Center for Communication Science, Rockville, MD, United States. lsquiers@rti.org.
authors.forename: Linda
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8851-7335
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Squiers
authors.forename: Derick
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6263-9940
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3432-5535
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Parvanta
authors.forename: Suzanne
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3592-8613
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Dolina
authors.forename: Bridget
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8661-2694
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Kelly
authors.forename: Jill
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0601-9605
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dever
authors.forename: Brian G
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5091-8782
authors.initials: BG
authors.lastname: Southwell
authors.forename: Amy
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0164-0208
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sanders
authors.forename: Erik
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9723-4078
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Augustson
keywords: cell phones; clinical trial; survey methods; telemedicine; text messaging; tobacco use cessation