Clinical trial NCT05722769: CSTOP Now! Child Sex Trafficking Stops with You
Official title: RCT to Evaluate Bystander-informed CSTOP Now! to Prevent Child Sex Trafficking in Kentucky Middle Schools
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: RECRUITING
Phase: NA
Conditions: Child Sex Trafficking
Keywords: Prevention
Lead sponsor: University of Kentucky
Sponsor class: OTHER
Collaborators: name: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
First posted: 2023-02-10
Enrollment: 5408
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 21
Maximum age (years): 65
Standard ages: ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: no
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Intervention model description: Randomization at Kentucky County level. Schools in counties randomized to the intervention receive the online intervention training. Schools in counties randomized to the attention control receive the attention control training.
Primary purpose: SCREENING

Brief summary: Focus: Intervention \& prevention of child commercial sexual exploitation or trafficking (CST) In Kentucky, familial SU/D increases risk of CST.

Primary goal: Implement and evaluate effectiveness of multi-level bystander-informed program (CSTOP Now!) aimed at Kentucky public middle schools for staff.

Detailed description: Randomization will occur at the Kentucky county level among 50 counties with at least 2 middle schools for a middle school-based cluster RCT set in 50 of Kentucky's 120 counties. Middle schools in half (n=25) of the 50 Kentucky counties will be randomized to the intervention condition, while middle schools in the remaining 25 Kentucky counties will be randomly assigned to the attention control. We have selected counties that are similar in population size, demographics (% white, % \<18 years of age, and % living in poverty, using 2019 Census estimates). Within each county, all middle schools (\>200 across 50 counties) will be invited to participate in this RCT.

Participating staff will be emailed a link that will take them to a description of the study. Participation will involve receipt of online training, as randomized at the county level, and completing surveys immediately before receipt of the first training and at the end of each of school terms annually.

Aim 1. Evaluate the effectiveness of child sex trafficking (CST) prevention training implemented among middle school staff randomized, at the Kentucky county level, to change middle school staff:

1. Knowledge of child sexual exploitation and trafficking (hypothesize greater knowledge in Intervention versus Control),
2. Attitudes towards child sexual exploitation and trafficking (hypothesize lower stigma in Intervention versus Control),
3. Willingness and efficacy to intervene (hypothesize greater efficacy in Intervention versus Control),
4. Use of 'bystander' actions to thwart child sexual exploitation and trafficking risk (hypothesize increase actions in Intervention versus Control),
5. Use child sex trafficking screening, referral and reporting (hypothesize increase actions in Intervention versus Control),

Aim 2. Evaluate effectiveness of child sex trafficking mass media intervention (Intervention versus Control), randomized and measured at the Kentucky county-level, based on middle school staff survey data:

1. To increase child sexual exploitation and trafficking screening \& reporting in short term (Years 1-2),
2. Begin to reduce child sexual exploitation and trafficking rates in longer term (Year 3-4) Analyses for both aims will be adjusted for school and county-level attributes

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Kentucky middle school staff in a public school
* Kentucky middle school staff in the intervention or attention control schools/counties.

Exclusion Criteria:

* Kentucky middle school staff not in intervention or attention control schools/counties.

Primary outcomes:
measure: Knowledge and Attitudes toward Child Sex Trafficking (CST) among middle school staff
timeFrame: Year 2-Year 4
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Use of bystander actions and See It To Stop It Indicator (SITSII) screening tool
timeFrame: Year 2-Year 4
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Lexington
country: United States
facility: University of Kentucky
state: Kentucky
Study officials:
affiliation: University of Kentucky
name: Ann L. Coker, PhD, MPH
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References: