The Doctors for Coronavirus Prevention Project Thanksgiving / Christmas Messaging Campaign
Sponsor
National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. (Other)
Overall Status
Completed
CT.gov ID
NCT04644328
Collaborator
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Other), Harvard University (Other), Massachusetts General Hospital (Other), Yale University (Other), Stanford University (Other)
820
1
2
3
274.3
Study Details
Study Description
Brief Summary
Facebook ads with physician-delivered videos were shown before the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays and focused on staying safe during the COVID pandemic by limiting travel and mask-wearing.
| Condition or Disease | Intervention/Treatment | Phase |
|---|---|---|
|
N/A |
Detailed Description
The investigators used Facebook ads to show a 20 second video clip recorded by Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard and Lynn Community health center doctors (6 people in all) to approximately 20,000,000 Facebook users. The ads will be shown before the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday and will focus on staying safe - limiting travel and mask-wearing. The investigators will randomize exposure to the ad campaign at the ZIP code or county level to ask:
Do the videos change mobility and Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday travel? Do they reduce the spread of COVID-19?
Are there spillover impacts from the video messages? For example, if individuals decide to stay home, then do the geographical regions that tend to be visited by people from treated areas experience any effects, either through information spillovers or through a reduction in travel?
Study Design
Study Type:
Interventional
Actual Enrollment
:
820 participants
Allocation:
Randomized
Intervention Model:
Sequential Assignment
Intervention Model Description:
A total of 13 states, comprising 829 counties, centrally report COVID-19 cases at the ZCTA level. Two separate experiments were run within the study, one around Thanksgiving and one around Christmas. For each experiment, approximately half of the counties were randomized to high-intensity treatment with the remaining randomized to low-intensity treatment. In high-intensity counties, 3/4 of ZCTAs were treated and 1/4 were not. In low-intensity counties, 1/4 of ZCTAs were treated and 3/4 were not. In treated ZCTAs, Facebook users received ads with messages from physicians and other health personnel urging them to stay home and wear masks to stop the spread of COVID-19. Users in non-treated ZCTAs received no such ads. After exclusions, 820 counties were randomized to high- or low-intensity treatment during Thanksgiving and 767 counties were during Christmas.A total of 13 states, comprising 829 counties, centrally report COVID-19 cases at the ZCTA level. Two separate experiments were run within the study, one around Thanksgiving and one around Christmas. For each experiment, approximately half of the counties were randomized to high-intensity treatment with the remaining randomized to low-intensity treatment. In high-intensity counties, 3/4 of ZCTAs were treated and 1/4 were not. In low-intensity counties, 1/4 of ZCTAs were treated and 3/4 were not. In treated ZCTAs, Facebook users received ads with messages from physicians and other health personnel urging them to stay home and wear masks to stop the spread of COVID-19. Users in non-treated ZCTAs received no such ads. After exclusions, 820 counties were randomized to high- or low-intensity treatment during Thanksgiving and 767 counties were during Christmas.
Masking:
None (Open Label)
Primary Purpose:
Prevention
Official Title:
The Doctors for Coronavirus Prevention Project Thanksgiving / Christmas Messaging Campaign
Actual Study Start Date
:
Nov 12, 2020
Actual Primary Completion Date
:
Feb 11, 2021
Actual Study Completion Date
:
Feb 11, 2021
Arms and Interventions
| Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
|---|---|
| Experimental: High-Intensity Treatment Arm Treatment: Individuals received approximately 3 Facebook ads over a 2-week period. Each ad contained a short video recorded by a physician using a script that discusses staying safe during the holidays by considering not traveling and using a mask when appropriate. Randomization to treatment: The 13 states which centrally report COVID-19 cases at the ZCTA level contained 829 counties. At Thanksgiving, 9 counties were excluded due to data limitations. At Christmas, 62 counties were excluded due to data limitations and potential negative impacts in rural, conservative areas resulting from polarization in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. Approximately half of the counties were randomized to high-intensity treatment with the remaining randomized to low-intensity treatment. In high-intensity counties, 3/4 of ZCTAs were treated (i.e., Facebook users in those ZCTAs received ads) and 1/4 were not. In low-intensity counties, 1/4 of ZCTAs were treated and 3/4 were not. |
Behavioral: Facebook Ads on the importance of staying safe during the Thanksgiving / Christmas holiday
Facebook ads to show a 15 second video clip recorded by MGH, Harvard and Lynn Community health center and other health care professionals. The ads will be shown before the Thanksgiving/Christmas holiday and will focus on staying safe - limiting travel and mask-wearing. The investigators will randomize exposure to the ad campaign at the ZIP code or county level.
|
| No Intervention: Low-Intensity Control Arm Control: Individuals did not receive ads containing short physician-recorded videos. Randomization to treatment: The 13 states which centrally report COVID-19 cases at the ZCTA level contained 829 counties. At Thanksgiving, 9 counties were excluded due to data limitations. At Christmas, 62 counties were excluded due to data limitations and potential negative impacts in rural, conservative areas resulting from polarization in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. Approximately half of the counties were randomized to high-intensity treatment with the remaining randomized to low-intensity treatment. In high-intensity counties, 3/4 of ZCTAs were treated (i.e., Facebook users in those ZCTAs received ads) and 1/4 were not. In low-intensity counties, 1/4 of ZCTAs were treated and 3/4 were not. |
Outcome Measures
Primary Outcome Measures
- Facebook Movement Metric [November 26, 2020 (Thanksgiving); December 24-25, 2020 (Christmas); February 2-29, 2020 (Baseline benchmark)]
The change in movement metric is the percent change in distance covered in a day compared to the same day of the week in the benchmark period of February 2-29, 2020, by people who started the day in a particular location. We define holiday travel as travel during the three days preceding each holiday, since the available data does not allow us to compute the impact of the intervention on the return travel (after the holiday). The reason is that the mobility data describes the behavior throughout the day, for people who were in each county that morning. Since the campaign was targeted based on home location, we can only capture its impact on travel away from home, not back home.
- Percentage Leaving Home on Day of Holiday [November 26, 2020 (Thanksgiving); December 24-25, 2020 (Christmas)]
The Facebook stay put metric is the percentage of people who stay within a small geographical area (a "tile" of 600m*600m in which they started the day). We use it to compute the share of people leaving home on the day of the holiday (i.e. this variable = 1 - stay put on the day of the holiday).
- Inverse Hyperbolic Sine of COVID-19 Cases [December 1-14 (Thanksgiving arms) and January 1-14 (Christmas arms)]
Inverse hyperbolic sine of COVID-19 cases during a 14 day period starting 5 days after each holiday
Secondary Outcome Measures
- Knowledge of COVID-19 Prevention Message (Recall of ad, Intent to Travel, Mask Wearing and Beliefs About Travel) [up to one month]
Facebook will ask a set of users in treated zip codes to answer four survey questions (each user answers only one question each). A small within-zip control group will be held from being treated, enabling comparisons between those who see the videos and those who don't. These questions will be asked a few days after the ad is shown on the User's feed and will include 1) recall of the ad; 2) intention of traveling over holiday; 3) intention of wearing a mask; and 4) beliefs about whether people should travel over holiday.
- Average Number of Tiles People Occupy (Mobility Measure) [up to one month]
this measures each day "how much people move around by counting the number of level-16 Bing tiles they are seen in within a day. People seen in more tiles are probably moving around more, while people seen in fewer are probably moving around less. Each day take eligible people in a given region and compute the number of distinct tiles they were seen in." This is aggregated to the county level.
- Percentage of Eligible Participants Only Observed in a Single Level-16 Bing Tile (no Change in Movement) [up to one month]
Facebook "Stay-put" data: this measures each day "the percentage of eligible people who are only observed in a single level-16 Bing tile (600m x 600m) during the course of a day" aggregated to they county level.
Eligibility Criteria
Criteria
Ages Eligible for Study:
18 Years
and Older
Sexes Eligible for Study:
All
Accepts Healthy Volunteers:
Yes
Inclusion Criteria:
- Individuals viewing the ads must be Facebook users, 18 years and older. Facebook will decide specifically which users receive the messages within a target geographical area (zip or county).
Exclusion Criteria:
Contacts and Locations
Locations
| Site | City | State | Country | Postal Code | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | JPAL North America | Cambridge | Massachusetts | United States | 02138 |
Sponsors and Collaborators
- National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Harvard University
- Massachusetts General Hospital
- Yale University
- Stanford University
Investigators
None specified.Study Documents (Full-Text)
More Information
Publications
None provided.Responsible Party:
Esther Duflo,
Abdul Latif Jameel Professor of Poverty Alleviation and Development Economics, MIT; Co-Director, Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab,
National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier:
NCT04644328
Other Study ID Numbers:
- 2003000118A010
First Posted:
Nov 25, 2020
Last Update Posted:
Dec 21, 2021
Last Verified:
Dec 1, 2021
Individual Participant Data (IPD) Sharing Statement:
Undecided
Plan to Share IPD:
Undecided
Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated Drug Product:
No
Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated Device Product:
No
Additional relevant MeSH terms:
Study Results
Participant Flow
| Recruitment Details | |
|---|---|
| Pre-assignment Detail | The 13 states which centrally report COVID-19 cases at the ZCTA level contained 829 counties. At Thanksgiving, 9 counties were excluded due to data limitations; at Christmas, 62 counties were excluded due to data limitations and potential negative impacts of treatment in rural, conservative areas resulting from polarization in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. |
| Arm/Group Title | High-Intensity Counties | Low-Intensity Counties |
|---|---|---|
| Arm/Group Description | Treatment: Individuals received approximately 3 Facebook ads over a 2-week period. Each ad contained a short video recorded by a physician using a script that discusses the importance of staying safe during Thanksgiving or Christmas by considering not traveling and using a mask when appropriate. Randomization to treatment: The investigators randomized exposure to the ad campaign as follows. The 13 states which centrally report COVID-19 cases at the ZCTA level contained 829 counties. At Thanksgiving, 9 counties were excluded due to data limitations; at Christmas, 62 counties were excluded due to data limitations and potential negative impacts of treatment in rural, conservative areas resulting from polarization in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. Approximately half of the counties were randomized to high-intensity treatment with the remaining randomized to low-intensity treatment. In high-intensity counties, 3/4 of ZCTAs were treated (i.e., Facebook users in those ZCTAs received ads) and 1/4 were not. In low-intensity counties, 1/4 of ZCTAs were treated and 3/4 were not. | Control: Individuals did not receive ads containing short physician-recorded videos. Randomization to treatment: The investigators randomized exposure to the ad campaign as follows. The 13 states which centrally report COVID-19 cases at the ZCTA level contained 829 counties. At Thanksgiving, 9 counties were excluded due to data limitations; at Christmas, 62 counties were excluded due to data limitations and potential negative impacts of treatment in rural, conservative areas resulting from polarization in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. Approximately half of the counties were randomized to high-intensity treatment with the remaining randomized to low-intensity treatment. In high-intensity counties, 3/4 of ZCTAs were treated (i.e., Facebook users in those ZCTAs received ads) and 1/4 were not. In low-intensity counties, 1/4 of ZCTAs were treated and 3/4 were not. |
| Period Title: Thanksgiving Period | ||
| STARTED | NA | NA |
| COMPLETED | NA | NA |
| NOT COMPLETED | NA | NA |
| Period Title: Thanksgiving Period | ||
| STARTED | NA | NA |
| COMPLETED | NA | NA |
| NOT COMPLETED | NA | NA |
Baseline Characteristics
| Arm/Group Title | High-Intensity Counties | Low-Intensity Counties | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arm/Group Description | Treatment: Individuals received approximately 3 Facebook ads over a 2-week period. Each ad contained a short video recorded by a physician using a script that discusses the importance of staying safe during Thanksgiving or Christmas by considering not traveling and using a mask when appropriate. Randomization to treatment: The investigators randomized exposure to the ad campaign as follows. The 13 states which centrally report COVID-19 cases at the ZCTA level contained 829 counties. At Thanksgiving, 9 counties were excluded due to data limitations; at Christmas, 62 counties were excluded due to data limitations and potential negative impacts of treatment in rural, conservative areas resulting from polarization in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. Approximately half of the counties were randomized to high-intensity treatment with the remaining randomized to low-intensity treatment. In high-intensity counties, 3/4 of ZCTAs were treated (i.e., Facebook users in those ZCTAs received ads) and 1/4 were not. In low-intensity counties, 1/4 of ZCTAs were treated and 3/4 were not. | Control: Individuals did not receive ads containing short physician-recorded videos. Randomization to treatment: The investigators randomized exposure to the ad campaign as follows. The 13 states which centrally report COVID-19 cases at the ZCTA level contained 829 counties. At Thanksgiving, 9 counties were excluded due to data limitations; at Christmas, 62 counties were excluded due to data limitations and potential negative impacts of treatment in rural, conservative areas resulting from polarization in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. Approximately half of the counties were randomized to high-intensity treatment with the remaining randomized to low-intensity treatment. In high-intensity counties, 3/4 of ZCTAs were treated (i.e., Facebook users in those ZCTAs received ads) and 1/4 were not. In low-intensity counties, 1/4 of ZCTAs were treated and 3/4 were not. | Total of all reporting groups |
| Overall Participants | NA | NA | NA |
| Overall Counties | 410 | 410 | 820 |
| Age, Customized (Counties) [Mean (Standard Deviation) ] | |||
| Sex/Gender, Customized (Counties) [Mean (Standard Deviation) ] | |||
| Race/Ethnicity, Customized (Proportion) [Mean (Standard Deviation) ] | |||
| Thanksgiving (Period 1) |
NA
(NA)
|
NA
(NA)
|
NA
(NA)
|
| Christmas (Period 2) |
NA
(NA)
|
NA
(NA)
|
NA
(NA)
|
| Baseline movement metric (Percent change relative to Feb 2020) [Mean (Standard Deviation) ] | |||
| Thanksgiving (Period 1) |
-8.58
(7.10)
|
-8.88
(6.42)
|
-8.73
(6.77)
|
| Christmas (Period 2) |
-8.69
(6.88)
|
-9.09
(6.56)
|
-8.89
(6.72)
|
| Baseline leave home (Percentage) [Mean (Standard Deviation) ] | |||
| Thanksgiving (Period 1) |
82.33
(2.42)
|
82.49
(2.53)
|
82.41
(2.47)
|
| Christmas (Period 2) |
82.40
(2.43)
|
82.44
(2.40)
|
82.42
(2.41)
|
| Missing baseline Facebook outcomes (Proportion of counties) [Mean (Standard Deviation) ] | |||
| Thanksgiving (Period 1) |
0.13
(0.34)
|
0.17
(0.38)
|
0.15
(0.36)
|
| Christmas (Period 2) |
0.11
(0.32)
|
0.13
(0.33)
|
0.12
(0.32)
|
| Baseline fortnightly cases (Individuals) [Mean (Standard Deviation) ] | |||
| Thanksgiving (Period 1) |
683.90
(3,032.94)
|
496.70
(1,165.17)
|
590.30
(2,297.94)
|
| Christmas (Period 2) |
654.77
(3,067.53)
|
598.54
(1,343.02)
|
626.84
(2,371.71)
|
| Baseline fortnightly deaths (Individuals) [Mean (Standard Deviation) ] | |||
| Thanksgiving (Period 1) |
5.51
(22.35)
|
4.64
(11.08)
|
5.07
(17.63)
|
| Christmas (Period 2) |
5.70
(23.07)
|
5.07
(11.29)
|
5.38
(18.19)
|
| Share urban (Proportion of county ZCTAs) [Mean (Standard Deviation) ] | |||
| Thanksgiving (Period 1) |
0.47
(0.34)
|
0.44
(0.34)
|
0.46
(0.34)
|
| Christmas (Period 2) |
0.48
(0.33)
|
0.50
(0.33)
|
0.49
(0.33)
|
| Share Democrats (Proportion of county voters) [Mean (Standard Deviation) ] | |||
| Thanksgiving (Period 1) |
0.36
(0.15)
|
0.35
(0.15)
|
0.36
(0.15)
|
| Christmas (Period 2) |
0.37
(0.15)
|
0.37
(0.15)
|
0.37
(0.15)
|
| Share Republicans (Proportion of county voters) [Mean (Standard Deviation) ] | |||
| Thanksgiving (Period 1) |
0.62
(0.16)
|
0.63
(0.15)
|
0.62
(0.15)
|
| Christmas (Period 2) |
0.61
(0.15)
|
0.61
(0.15)
|
0.61
(0.15)
|
| Population in 2019 (individuals) [Mean (Standard Deviation) ] | |||
| Thanksgiving (Period 1) |
122,491
(349,501)
|
102,818
(282,369)
|
112,654
(317,672)
|
| Christmas (Period 2) |
116,787
(344,511)
|
122,875
(309,239)
|
119,811
(327,266)
|
Outcome Measures
| Title | Facebook Movement Metric |
|---|---|
| Description | The change in movement metric is the percent change in distance covered in a day compared to the same day of the week in the benchmark period of February 2-29, 2020, by people who started the day in a particular location. We define holiday travel as travel during the three days preceding each holiday, since the available data does not allow us to compute the impact of the intervention on the return travel (after the holiday). The reason is that the mobility data describes the behavior throughout the day, for people who were in each county that morning. Since the campaign was targeted based on home location, we can only capture its impact on travel away from home, not back home. |
| Time Frame | November 26, 2020 (Thanksgiving); December 24-25, 2020 (Christmas); February 2-29, 2020 (Baseline benchmark) |
Outcome Measure Data
| Analysis Population Description |
|---|
| Rural, conservative counties were excluded during Christmas due to potential negative impacts of treatment resulting from polarization in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. The two periods have been entered as rows to avoid double-counting counties. |
| Arm/Group Title | High-Intensity Counties | Low-Intensity Counties |
|---|---|---|
| Arm/Group Description | Treatment: Individuals received approximately 3 Facebook ads over a 2-week period. Each ad contained a short video recorded by a physician using a script that discusses the importance of staying safe during Thanksgiving or Christmas by considering not traveling and using a mask when appropriate. Randomization to treatment: The investigators randomized exposure to the ad campaign as follows. The 13 states which centrally report COVID-19 cases at the ZCTA level contained 829 counties. At Thanksgiving, 9 counties were excluded due to data limitations; at Christmas, 62 counties were excluded due to data limitations and potential negative impacts of treatment in rural, conservative areas resulting from polarization in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. Approximately half of the counties were randomized to high-intensity treatment with the remaining randomized to low-intensity treatment. In high-intensity counties, 3/4 of ZCTAs were treated (i.e., Facebook users in those ZCTAs received ads) and 1/4 were not. In low-intensity counties, 1/4 of ZCTAs were treated and 3/4 were not. | Control: Individuals did not receive ads containing short physician-recorded videos. Randomization to treatment: The investigators randomized exposure to the ad campaign as follows. The 13 states which centrally report COVID-19 cases at the ZCTA level contained 829 counties. At Thanksgiving, 9 counties were excluded due to data limitations; at Christmas, 62 counties were excluded due to data limitations and potential negative impacts of treatment in rural, conservative areas resulting from polarization in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. Approximately half of the counties were randomized to high-intensity treatment with the remaining randomized to low-intensity treatment. In high-intensity counties, 3/4 of ZCTAs were treated (i.e., Facebook users in those ZCTAs received ads) and 1/4 were not. In low-intensity counties, 1/4 of ZCTAs were treated and 3/4 were not. |
| Measure Participants | NA | NA |
| Measure Counties | 356 | 340 |
| Thanksgiving (Period 1) |
-6.082
|
-5.320
|
| Christmas (Period 2) |
-2.603
|
-1.823
|
| Title | Percentage Leaving Home on Day of Holiday |
|---|---|
| Description | The Facebook stay put metric is the percentage of people who stay within a small geographical area (a "tile" of 600m*600m in which they started the day). We use it to compute the share of people leaving home on the day of the holiday (i.e. this variable = 1 - stay put on the day of the holiday). |
| Time Frame | November 26, 2020 (Thanksgiving); December 24-25, 2020 (Christmas) |
Outcome Measure Data
| Analysis Population Description |
|---|
| Rural, conservative counties were excluded during Christmas due to potential negative impacts of treatment resulting from polarization in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. The two periods have been entered as rows to avoid double-counting counties. |
| Arm/Group Title | High-Intensity Counties | Low-Intensity Counties |
|---|---|---|
| Arm/Group Description | Treatment: Individuals received approximately 3 Facebook ads over a 2-week period. Each ad contained a short video recorded by a physician using a script that discusses the importance of staying safe during Thanksgiving or Christmas by considering not traveling and using a mask when appropriate. Randomization to treatment: The investigators randomized exposure to the ad campaign as follows. The 13 states which centrally report COVID-19 cases at the ZCTA level contained 829 counties. At Thanksgiving, 9 counties were excluded due to data limitations; at Christmas, 62 counties were excluded due to data limitations and potential negative impacts of treatment in rural, conservative areas resulting from polarization in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. Approximately half of the counties were randomized to high-intensity treatment with the remaining randomized to low-intensity treatment. In high-intensity counties, 3/4 of ZCTAs were treated (i.e., Facebook users in those ZCTAs received ads) and 1/4 were not. In low-intensity counties, 1/4 of ZCTAs were treated and 3/4 were not. | Control: Individuals did not receive ads containing short physician-recorded videos. Randomization to treatment: The investigators randomized exposure to the ad campaign as follows. The 13 states which centrally report COVID-19 cases at the ZCTA level contained 829 counties. At Thanksgiving, 9 counties were excluded due to data limitations; at Christmas, 62 counties were excluded due to data limitations and potential negative impacts of treatment in rural, conservative areas resulting from polarization in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. Approximately half of the counties were randomized to high-intensity treatment with the remaining randomized to low-intensity treatment. In high-intensity counties, 3/4 of ZCTAs were treated (i.e., Facebook users in those ZCTAs received ads) and 1/4 were not. In low-intensity counties, 1/4 of ZCTAs were treated and 3/4 were not. |
| Measure Participants | NA | NA |
| Measure Counties | 356 | 340 |
| Thanksgiving (Period 1) |
71.308
|
71.468
|
| Christmas (Period 2) |
72.859
|
72.852
|
| Title | Inverse Hyperbolic Sine of COVID-19 Cases |
|---|---|
| Description | Inverse hyperbolic sine of COVID-19 cases during a 14 day period starting 5 days after each holiday |
| Time Frame | December 1-14 (Thanksgiving arms) and January 1-14 (Christmas arms) |
Outcome Measure Data
| Analysis Population Description |
|---|
| ZCTAs in rural, conservative counties were excluded during Christmas due to potential negative impacts of treatment resulting from polarization in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. The two periods have been entered as rows to avoid double-counting ZCTAs. Note that there are more ZCTAs in the Christmas control than Thanksgiving control because the two periods were randomized separately and the number of ZCTAs varies by county. |
| Arm/Group Title | Treatment ZCTAs | Control ZCTAs |
|---|---|---|
| Arm/Group Description | Treatment: Individuals received approximately 3 Facebook ads over a 2-week period. Each ad contained a short video recorded by a physician using a script that discusses the importance of staying safe during Thanksgiving or Christmas by considering not traveling and using a mask when appropriate. Randomization to treatment: The investigators randomized exposure to the ad campaign as follows. The 13 states which centrally report COVID-19 cases at the ZCTA level contained 829 counties. At Thanksgiving, 9 counties were excluded due to data limitations; at Christmas, 62 counties were excluded due to data limitations and potential negative impacts of treatment in rural, conservative areas resulting from polarization in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. Approximately half of the counties were randomized to high-intensity treatment with the remaining randomized to low-intensity treatment. In high-intensity counties, 3/4 of ZCTAs were treated (i.e., Facebook users in those ZCTAs received ads) and 1/4 were not. In low-intensity counties, 1/4 of ZCTAs were treated and 3/4 were not. | Control: Individuals did not receive ads containing short physician-recorded videos. Randomization to treatment: The investigators randomized exposure to the ad campaign as follows. The 13 states which centrally report COVID-19 cases at the ZCTA level contained 829 counties. At Thanksgiving, 9 counties were excluded due to data limitations; at Christmas, 62 counties were excluded due to data limitations and potential negative impacts of treatment in rural, conservative areas resulting from polarization in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. Approximately half of the counties were randomized to high-intensity treatment with the remaining randomized to low-intensity treatment. In high-intensity counties, 3/4 of ZCTAs were treated (i.e., Facebook users in those ZCTAs received ads) and 1/4 were not. In low-intensity counties, 1/4 of ZCTAs were treated and 3/4 were not. |
| Measure Participants | NA | NA |
| Measure ZCTA | 3427 | 3387 |
| Thanksgiving (Period 1) |
4.333
|
4.298
|
| Christmas (Period 2) |
4.368
|
4.442
|
| Title | Knowledge of COVID-19 Prevention Message (Recall of ad, Intent to Travel, Mask Wearing and Beliefs About Travel) |
|---|---|
| Description | Facebook will ask a set of users in treated zip codes to answer four survey questions (each user answers only one question each). A small within-zip control group will be held from being treated, enabling comparisons between those who see the videos and those who don't. These questions will be asked a few days after the ad is shown on the User's feed and will include 1) recall of the ad; 2) intention of traveling over holiday; 3) intention of wearing a mask; and 4) beliefs about whether people should travel over holiday. |
| Time Frame | up to one month |
Outcome Measure Data
| Analysis Population Description |
|---|
| [Not Specified] |
| Arm/Group Title |
|---|
| Arm/Group Description |
| Title | Average Number of Tiles People Occupy (Mobility Measure) |
|---|---|
| Description | this measures each day "how much people move around by counting the number of level-16 Bing tiles they are seen in within a day. People seen in more tiles are probably moving around more, while people seen in fewer are probably moving around less. Each day take eligible people in a given region and compute the number of distinct tiles they were seen in." This is aggregated to the county level. |
| Time Frame | up to one month |
Outcome Measure Data
| Analysis Population Description |
|---|
| [Not Specified] |
| Arm/Group Title |
|---|
| Arm/Group Description |
| Title | Percentage of Eligible Participants Only Observed in a Single Level-16 Bing Tile (no Change in Movement) |
|---|---|
| Description | Facebook "Stay-put" data: this measures each day "the percentage of eligible people who are only observed in a single level-16 Bing tile (600m x 600m) during the course of a day" aggregated to they county level. |
| Time Frame | up to one month |
Outcome Measure Data
| Analysis Population Description |
|---|
| [Not Specified] |
| Arm/Group Title |
|---|
| Arm/Group Description |
Adverse Events
| Time Frame | All-Cause Mortality, Serious, and Other (Not Including Serious) Adverse Events were not monitored/assessed. | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adverse Event Reporting Description | All-Cause Mortality, Serious, and Other (Not Including Serious) Adverse Events were not monitored/assessed. | |||
| Arm/Group Title | High-Intensity Counties | Low-Intensity Counties | ||
| Arm/Group Description | Treatment: Individuals received approximately 3 Facebook ads over a 2-week period. Each ad contained a short video recorded by a physician using a script that discusses the importance of staying safe during Thanksgiving or Christmas by considering not traveling and using a mask when appropriate. Randomization to treatment: The investigators randomized exposure to the ad campaign as follows. The 13 states which centrally report COVID-19 cases at the ZCTA level contained 829 counties. At Thanksgiving, 9 counties were excluded due to data limitations; at Christmas, 62 counties were excluded due to data limitations and potential negative impacts of treatment in rural, conservative areas resulting from polarization in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. Approximately half of the counties were randomized to high-intensity treatment with the remaining randomized to low-intensity treatment. In high-intensity counties, 3/4 of ZCTAs were treated (i.e., Facebook users in those ZCTAs received ads) and 1/4 were not. In low-intensity counties, 1/4 of ZCTAs were treated and 3/4 were not. | Control: Individuals did not receive ads containing short physician-recorded videos. Randomization to treatment: The investigators randomized exposure to the ad campaign as follows. The 13 states which centrally report COVID-19 cases at the ZCTA level contained 829 counties. At Thanksgiving, 9 counties were excluded due to data limitations; at Christmas, 62 counties were excluded due to data limitations and potential negative impacts of treatment in rural, conservative areas resulting from polarization in the wake of the 2020 presidential election. Approximately half of the counties were randomized to high-intensity treatment with the remaining randomized to low-intensity treatment. In high-intensity counties, 3/4 of ZCTAs were treated (i.e., Facebook users in those ZCTAs received ads) and 1/4 were not. In low-intensity counties, 1/4 of ZCTAs were treated and 3/4 were not. | ||
All Cause Mortality |
||||
| High-Intensity Counties | Low-Intensity Counties | |||
| Affected / at Risk (%) | # Events | Affected / at Risk (%) | # Events | |
| Total | 0/0 (NaN) | 0/0 (NaN) | ||
Serious Adverse Events |
||||
| High-Intensity Counties | Low-Intensity Counties | |||
| Affected / at Risk (%) | # Events | Affected / at Risk (%) | # Events | |
| Total | 0/0 (NaN) | 0/0 (NaN) | ||
Other (Not Including Serious) Adverse Events |
||||
| High-Intensity Counties | Low-Intensity Counties | |||
| Affected / at Risk (%) | # Events | Affected / at Risk (%) | # Events | |
| Total | 0/0 (NaN) | 0/0 (NaN) | ||
Limitations/Caveats
[Not Specified]
More Information
Certain Agreements
Principal Investigators are NOT employed by the organization sponsoring the study.
There is NOT an agreement between Principal Investigators and the Sponsor (or its agents) that restricts the PI's rights to discuss or publish trial results after the trial is completed.
Results Point of Contact
| Name/Title | Esther Duflo |
|---|---|
| Organization | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| Phone | 617-258-7013 |
| eduflo@mit.edu |
Responsible Party:
Esther Duflo,
Abdul Latif Jameel Professor of Poverty Alleviation and Development Economics, MIT; Co-Director, Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab,
National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier:
NCT04644328
Other Study ID Numbers:
- 2003000118A010
First Posted:
Nov 25, 2020
Last Update Posted:
Dec 21, 2021
Last Verified:
Dec 1, 2021