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Trial registered on ANZCTR


Registration number
ACTRN12623000324617
Ethics application status
Approved
Date submitted
14/03/2023
Date registered
27/03/2023
Date last updated
7/04/2024
Date data sharing statement initially provided
27/03/2023
Type of registration
Prospectively registered

Titles & IDs
Public title
Investigating the impact of an online course on buying and saving behaviour
Scientific title
Investigating the impact of an online course for adults on buying and saving behaviour: A pilot randomised controlled trial
Secondary ID [1] 309206 0
MQRAS0001056
Universal Trial Number (UTN)
Trial acronym
Linked study record

Health condition
Health condition(s) or problem(s) studied:
Overconsumption 329349 0
Condition category
Condition code
Public Health 326292 326292 0 0
Health promotion/education

Intervention/exposure
Study type
Interventional
Description of intervention(s) / exposure
Breaking up with Belongings is a novel online, self-guided educational course that consists of 24 videos narrated by an avatar. The online videos are accompanied by an online workbook that can be completed from one’s computer. The videos range in length from 3–16 minutes, for approximately 4 hours of content. Completion of the workbook activities will take at least another two hours. Participants will have access to the course for 3 months so that they can complete the videos and workbooks at their discretion. However, participatns will be asked to complete the course within 7 weeks so that they can spend the remainder of their time in the trial working toward the goal(s) they set.

The course begins by asking participants to think about what they hope to accomplish and why. It then instructs participants about the causes and consequences of object attachment and teaches them how to manage their emotions, so that they will be better able to resist buying and saving unnecessary belongings. The course assists participants in setting a smart goal and in developing a plan that will help them reach that goal. Throughout the course, various characters are introduced that have acquiring and saving difficulties to show participants how to carry out suggested techniques. The workbook is used to log the activities mentioned in the videos (i.e., the workbook does not provide new information). To understand how to complete the workbook, participants need to watch the videos.

This course is new and is not currently available outside of this research study.

Adherence will be assessed by using available website data on the number of videos completed by each participant, as well as the time spent on the website.
Intervention code [1] 325655 0
Behaviour
Intervention code [2] 325656 0
Lifestyle
Comparator / control treatment
Participants assigned to the wait-list control group will receive access to Breaking up with Belongings online course after they complete the three month follow-up assessment.
Control group
Active

Outcomes
Primary outcome [1] 334159 0
The 13-item Minimalism Scale assesses clutter removal, cautious shopping, longevity, and self-sufficiency. As such, this measure captures a holistic consumption lifestyle, from the moment of making a purchasing decision to the end of discarding behaviour, to gauge sustainable living.
Timepoint [1] 334159 0
Baseline, 3-month post-randomisation follow-up
Primary outcome [2] 334204 0
Flourishing Scale will be used to assess wellbeing
Timepoint [2] 334204 0
Baseline, 3-month post-randomisation follow-up
Secondary outcome [1] 419583 0
Impulsive Buying as assessed by 7 items derived from two Impulsive Buying subscales (Richmond Compulsive Buying Scale; Risky Indebtedness Behaviour Questionnaire)
Timepoint [1] 419583 0
Baseline, 3-month post-randomisation follow-up
Secondary outcome [2] 419585 0
Retail Expenditure based on Australian and New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC) 2006 classes as reported by participants in a survey specifically designed for this study.
Timepoint [2] 419585 0
Baseline, 3-month post-randomisation follow-up
Secondary outcome [3] 419586 0
Clutter Quality of Life Scale
Timepoint [3] 419586 0
Baseline, 3-month post-randomisation follow-up
Secondary outcome [4] 419587 0
Saving Inventory-Revised will be used to assess excessive aquiring, difficulty discarding, and clutter
Timepoint [4] 419587 0
Baseline, 3-month post-randomisation follow-up
Secondary outcome [5] 419589 0
Object Attachment Security Measure
Timepoint [5] 419589 0
Baseline, 3-month post-randomisation follow-up
Secondary outcome [6] 419590 0
Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale-16
Timepoint [6] 419590 0
Baseline, 3-month post-randomisation follow-up
Secondary outcome [7] 419591 0
Satisfaction With the Program based on the Client Satisfaction Questionnaire for Internet-based interventions and open- and close-ended questions about the Breaking up with Belongings course.
Timepoint [7] 419591 0
3-month post-randomisation follow-up

Eligibility
Key inclusion criteria
- 18+ years of age
- Fluent in English
- Reside in Australia
- Have consistent access to the internet and a desktop computer or laptop
- <5 on either the Number of Possessions subscale or the Mindfully Curated Consumption subscale of the Minimalist Consumer Scale
Minimum age
18 Years
Maximum age
No limit
Sex
Both males and females
Can healthy volunteers participate?
Yes
Key exclusion criteria
- Incomplete baseline questionnaire
- Random responding to the baseline questionnaire
- Failure to provide contact details

Study design
Purpose of the study
Educational / counselling / training
Allocation to intervention
Randomised controlled trial
Procedure for enrolling a subject and allocating the treatment (allocation concealment procedures)
The baseline survey administered via REDcap will be programmed to determine who meets study inclusion/exclusion criteria. Allocation to condition will then occur using sealed opaque envelopes.
Methods used to generate the sequence in which subjects will be randomised (sequence generation)
Participants will be assigned to one of two conditions (i.e., Breaking up with Belongings vs wait-list control) using block randomisation. Random block sizes of four, six, and eight will be used.
Masking / blinding
Blinded (masking used)
Who is / are masked / blinded?


The people assessing the outcomes
The people analysing the results/data
Intervention assignment
Parallel
Other design features
Phase
Not Applicable
Type of endpoint/s
Efficacy
Statistical methods / analysis
Whitehead et al. (2016) and Bell (2018) provided estimates for the optimal sample size of pilot studies based on both the target effect size and size of a future larger trial that minimises the number of participants required across both studies. Based upon their rule of thumb for detecting a small difference between groups (0.1 < d < 0.3), we will require 25 individuals in each condition. To compensate for an attrition rate of 20%, we will allocate 35 participants to each condition.

Descriptive statistics will be used to examine participant characteristics at baseline. General linear models, using intention to treat principles, will be used to examine changes in outcomes over time from baseline to three-month follow-up for the two groups.

Quantitative satisfaction data will be examined using descriptive statistics, whereas thematic analysis will be performed on qualitative data.

Recruitment
Recruitment status
Completed
Date of first participant enrolment
Anticipated
29/03/2023
Actual
27/03/2023
Date of last participant enrolment
Anticipated
31/07/2023
Actual
11/04/2023
Date of last data collection
Anticipated
31/10/2023
Actual
10/08/2023
Sample size
Target
70
Accrual to date
Final
89
Recruitment in Australia
Recruitment state(s)
ACT,NSW,NT,QLD,SA,TAS,WA,VIC

Funding & Sponsors
Funding source category [1] 313396 0
University
Name [1] 313396 0
Macquarie University Research Acceleration Scheme
Country [1] 313396 0
Australia
Primary sponsor type
University
Name
Macquarie University
Address
Balaclava Road, Macquarie Park, NSW 2109
Country
Australia
Secondary sponsor category [1] 315164 0
None
Name [1] 315164 0
Address [1] 315164 0
Country [1] 315164 0

Ethics approval
Ethics application status
Approved
Ethics committee name [1] 312613 0
Macquarie University Human Research Ethics Committee
Ethics committee address [1] 312613 0
Balaclava Road, Macquarie Park, NSW 2109
Ethics committee country [1] 312613 0
Australia
Date submitted for ethics approval [1] 312613 0
Approval date [1] 312613 0
07/03/2023
Ethics approval number [1] 312613 0
Reference No: 520231298746649

Summary
Brief summary
Australia is the thirteenth largest contributor of household waste per capita in the world (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 2022), spending over $10.5 billion annually on goods and services that are never or rarely used (Australia Institute, 2005). This wasteful behaviour contributes to costly landfills, environmental degradation, and rising household debt. Given society’s overconsumption, a handful of commercial programs currently exist to help people strive for minimalism and to declutter their homes. To the best of our knowledge, none of these commercial programs have been scientifically evaluated to see if they actually work, although many testimonials regarding their effectiveness can be found on the Internet. Thus, there is a clear need to develop an evidence base for such interventions.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of a new online educational course that was developed to help people buy and save fewer possession in order to save money, reduce clutter, and safeguard the planet. This new course, Breaking up with Belongings, is based on scientific research regarding object attachment, possession ownership, and behaviour change. The course is self-paced and comprised of 6 hours of content (videos plus workbook activities).

Eligible participants will be randomly assigned to receive this program immediately or after a three month delay. We ask that participants complete the course within 7 weeks of receiving it, so that they can spend the rest of their time working toward reaching the goal(s) they set during the course.

Participants are assessed at baseline and three months later. We expect that those who recieve the Breaking up with Belongings course immediately will report greater improvements than those who receive access to it after a three month delay.
Trial website
https://www.melissanorberg.com/current-projects/breaking-up-with-belongings
Trial related presentations / publications
Public notes

Contacts
Principal investigator
Name 125290 0
Prof Melissa Norberg
Address 125290 0
Macquarie University, Balaclava Road, Macquarie Park, NSW 2109
Country 125290 0
Australia
Phone 125290 0
+61 02 98508127
Fax 125290 0
Email 125290 0
[email protected]
Contact person for public queries
Name 125291 0
Melissa Norberg
Address 125291 0
Macquarie University, Balaclava Road, Macquarie Park, NSW 2109
Country 125291 0
Australia
Phone 125291 0
+61 02 98508127
Fax 125291 0
Email 125291 0
[email protected]
Contact person for scientific queries
Name 125292 0
Melissa Norberg
Address 125292 0
Macquarie University, Balaclava Road, Macquarie Park, NSW 2109
Country 125292 0
Australia
Phone 125292 0
+61 02 98508127
Fax 125292 0
Email 125292 0
[email protected]

Data sharing statement
Will individual participant data (IPD) for this trial be available (including data dictionaries)?
Yes
What data in particular will be shared?
All of the individual participant data collected during the trial, after de-identification
When will data be available (start and end dates)?
Data will be available within 18 months of the publication documenting study findings. No end date has been determined.
Available to whom?
Anyone who wishes to access it.
Available for what types of analyses?
Any purpose.
How or where can data be obtained?
Data will be stored within the Macquarie Research Data Repository (https://figshare.mq.edu.au/data)


What supporting documents are/will be available?

No Supporting Document Provided



Results publications and other study-related documents

Documents added manually
No documents have been uploaded by study researchers.

Documents added automatically
No additional documents have been identified.