%0 Journal Article
%@ 1438-8871
%I JMIR Publications
%V 19
%N 8
%P e284
%T A Peer-Led, Social Media-Delivered, Safer Sex Intervention for Chinese College Students: Randomized Controlled Trial
%A Sun,Wai Han
%A Wong,Carlos King Ho
%A Wong,William Chi Wai
%+ Department of Family Medicine and Primary Care, The University of Hong Kong, Ap Lei Chau Clinic, 3/F, 161 Main Street, Ap Lei Chau, Hong Kong,, China (Hong Kong), 852 2518 5657, wongwcw@hku.hk
%K sex education
%K social media
%K randomized controlled trial
%D 2017
%7 09.08.2017
%9 Original Paper
%J J Med Internet Res
%G English
%X Background: The peer-led, social media-delivered intervention is an emerging method in sexual health promotion. However, no research has yet investigated its effectiveness as compared with other online channels or in an Asian population. Objective: The objective of this study is to compare a peer-led, social media-delivered, safer sex intervention with a sexual health website. Both conditions target Chinese college students in Hong Kong. Methods: A randomized controlled trial was conducted with a peer-led, safer sex Facebook group as the intervention and an existing online sexual health website as the control. The intervention materials were developed with peer input and followed the information-motivation-behavioral skills model; the intervention was moderated by peer educators. The participants filled out the online questionnaires before and after the 6-week intervention period. Outcome evaluations included safer sex attitudes, behavioral skills, and behaviors, while process evaluation focused on online experience, online-visiting frequency, and online engagement. The effect of online-visiting frequency and online engagement on outcome variables was investigated. Results: Of 196 eligible participants—100 in the control group and 96 in the intervention group—who joined the study, 2 (1.0%) control participants joined the Facebook group and 24 of the remaining 194 participants (12.4%) were lost to follow-up. For the process evaluation, participants in the intervention group reported more satisfying online experiences (P<.001) and a higher level of online-visiting frequency (P<.001). They also had more positive comments when compared with the control group. For outcome evaluation, within-group analysis showed significant improvement in condom use attitude (P=.02) and behavioral skills (P<.001) in the intervention group, but not in the control group. No significant between-group difference was found. After adjusting for demographic data, increased online-visiting frequency was associated with better contraceptive use behavioral intention (P=.05), better behavioral skills (P=.02), and more frequent condom use (P=.04). Conclusions: A peer-led, social media-delivered, safer sex intervention was found to be feasible and effective in improving attitudes toward condom use and behavioral skills, but was not significantly more effective than a website. Future research may focus on the long-term effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of this popular method, as well as the potential cultural differences of using social media between different countries. Trial Registration: Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR): ChiCTR-IOR-16009495; http://www.chictr.org.cn/showprojen.aspx?proj=16234 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6s0Fc2L9T) 
%M 28793980
%R 10.2196/jmir.7403
%U http://www.jmir.org/2017/8/e284/
%U https://doi.org/10.2196/jmir.7403
%U http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28793980