Clinical trial NCT05026619: Youth Outlook on Life Opportunities Study
Official title: Youth Outlook on Life Opportunities Study
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITING
Phase: NA
Conditions: Childbearing, Delayed
Marriage Age
Educational Problems
Anxiety
Age Related Female Infertility
Lead sponsor: National University of Singapore
Sponsor class: OTHER
First posted: 2021-08-30
Enrollment: 1000
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 20
Maximum age (years): 24
Standard ages: ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Primary purpose: OTHER

Brief summary: Singapore's fertility rate is currently below 1.2, raising concerns about population ageing and long-term sustainability. The fertility decline is characterized by falling birth rates among women in their 20s with almost no recuperation among women in their 30s. This project explores a) whether informational imperfections help to account for high intended ages at childbearing in Singapore, b) whether informational interventions significantly affect ideal and expected ages at marriage and childbearing, and expected probability of undergoing social egg freezing, and c) whether informational interventions significantly affect expected and actual educational outcomes and labor market outcomes.

Our hypotheses are:

1. University students have knowledge gaps about age-related onset of infertility, assisted reproductive technologies and local policy initiatives related to age at marriage and childbearing, especially among male students.
2. Being exposed to accurate information in these domains leads to significantly lower ideal/expected ages at marriage and childbearing, and higher expected probability of undergoing social egg freezing, immediately after the intervention.
3. Being exposed to accurate information in these domains does not lead to lower educational and labor market expectations immediately after the intervention among either male or female students, or to significant differences in module choices, Cumulative Average Point (CAP), starting salary and employment status of university students in the following academic semester and six months after graduation, among either male or female students.

Detailed description: The project conducts a randomized controlled trial involving 1000 full-time undergraduate students at NUS. The trial has three stages.

In the first stage, participants will be recruited through campus advertisements.

In the second stage, participants who meet the eligibility criteria will complete a 30-40 minute online survey. The survey includes the following:

1. a background survey on items including age, race, family income and parental background,
2. a section on dating history,
3. questions on ideal/expected ages at marriage, expected probability of undergoing social egg freezing, and fertility and educational and career expectations,
4. a section on mental wellbeing,
5. an awareness survey on age-related onset of infertility, assisted reproductive technologies, and local policy initiatives related to age at marriage and childbearing,
6. an informational intervention. One-third of participants (333 individuals) are randomly assigned to receive accurate information on the age-related fertility survey items. One-third of participants (333 individuals) are randomly assigned to receive accurate information on policy-related survey items. One-third of participants (334 individuals) receives a fact sheet on diabetes in Singapore. Participants are asked to read the information thoroughly,
7. selected questions from c), which collects data on after-intervention intended ages at marriage and fertility and educational and career expectations, as well as questions about whether the questions were useful or led to anxiety.

In the third stage, the students' responses are linked to the Educational Data Lake managed by ALSET, Provost's Office, NUS, which collects data on students' module choices (whether within the same major, in a different major within the same faculty or in a different faculty) and CAP in the following academic semester and at graduation, graduation status, and starting salary and employment status six months after graduation. All participants are informed and these linkages are mentioned in the consent form.

After the data collection is completed, we will analyse the data using a difference-in-differences econometric model. Our model compares three sets of dependent variables at different points in time:

1. Ideal/expected ages at marriage and fertility, expected probability of undergoing social egg freezing, and educational and career expectations, compared before and immediately after the intervention,
2. Module choices and CAP, compared before the survey and in the following academic semester and at graduation, and graduation status,
3. Starting salary and employment status, compared between the control and treatment groups six months after graduation (multiple regression rather than difference-in-differences model)

The results are compared by gender, faculty, educational and career expectations, and other background characteristics, including dating history and mental wellbeing.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Full-time NUS undergraduate
* Singaporean citizen
* Aged 20-24
* Never been married
* Childless and not currently expecting
* Identify as heterosexual

Exclusion Criteria:

- Student enrolled in faculty where the Dean has not provided approval for recruitment

Primary outcomes:
measure: Ideal age at marriage (both self and future spouse), first birth and number of children
timeFrame: Within one year and two years of initial survey
measure: Expected age at marriage (both self and future spouse), first birth and number of children
timeFrame: Within one year and two years of initial survey
measure: Expected probability of undergoing social egg freezing (only for females respondents)
timeFrame: Within one year and two years of initial survey
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Expected levels of education (both self and future spouse)
timeFrame: Within one year and two years of initial survey
measure: Expected earnings (both self and future spouse)
timeFrame: Within one year and two years of initial survey
measure: Expected full-time working status
timeFrame: Within one year and two years of initial survey
measure: Expected occupation (self) at age 35
timeFrame: Within one year and two years of initial survey
measure: Expected contribution to housework and childcare if married with young children
timeFrame: Within one year and two years of initial survey
measure: Usefulness and anxiety over information presented
timeFrame: Within one year and two years of initial survey
measure: Cumulative Point Average (CAP)
timeFrame: Within two years and six years of initial survey
measure: Module choices
timeFrame: Within two years and six years of initial survey
measure: Graduation and honours
timeFrame: Within six years of initial survey
measure: Employment status six months after graduation
timeFrame: Within six years of initial survey
measure: Starting salary
timeFrame: Within six years of initial survey
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Singapore
country: Singapore
facility: National University of Singapore
Study officials:
affiliation: National University of Singapore
name: Poh Lin Tan, PhD
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References: