SuicideNCT07383714
Nudging Parental Actions for Youth Suicide Prevention
A study testing Text-messaging for safety reminders and Text-messaging with safety reminders and risk framing in people with Suicide and Suicide Attempt, run by University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at 1 site in United States.
Trial summary
The goal of the study is to determine effectiveness of a behaviorally informed text messaging intervention to help parents increase safety practices and reduce their teens' access to lethal means following a suicide-related emergency department visit. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 13 to 17 years
- Conditions the study is for
- Suicide, Suicide Attempt
- What is being tested?
- Text-messaging for safety reminders and Text-messaging with safety reminders and risk framing
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 129 participants
- Where
- 1 siteUnited States
- Study dates
- 10 Jun 2026to 31 Aug 2027
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- Not yet: the study is under way
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 13 to 17 years
- All sexes
- No healthy volunteers
- Child
Who may be able to join
- Guardian must be able and willing to provide informed consent, and the participant must be able and willing to provide assent.
- Parent and adolescent willingness and ability to participate in study procedures and complete assessments at baseline, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks.
- Presentation to the ED for a suicide-related emergency, defined as suicidal ideation within the last 2 weeks or a suicide attempt within the past month.
- Adolescents aged 12-17 years during the consent.
- Access to a mobile phone with text messaging capability for the parent/legal guardian.
- Ability to communicate in English.
Who cannot join
- Absence of a legal guardian capable of providing consent.
- Parents/legal guardians without access to a mobile phone with texting capability.
- Inability to communicate in English.
- Adolescents in state custody or under legal restrictions that prevent study participation.
- Adolescents involved in the justice system in a manner that would interfere with study participation.
- Adolescents with autism spectrum disorder or intellectual development disorder needing substantial or very substantial support
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
United States1 site, 1 recruiting
- Recruiting
Children's Medical Center
Dallas, Texas, 75287
Emine Rabia Ayvaci, MD, +16508040602, emine.ayvaci@utsouthwestern.edu
About this study
Official title: Nudging Parental Action With A Randomized Controlled Trial of Text Messaging Intervention for Suicide Prevention
The goal of the study is to determine effectiveness of a behaviorally informed text messaging intervention to help parents increase safety practices and reduce their teens' access to lethal means following a suicide-related emergency department visit.
Read the detailed description
This study tests a text messaging program that helps parents keep their teens safe after a visit to the emergency department for suicidal thoughts or behavior. Adolescents face a higher risk of suicide after leaving the emergency department, and limiting access to lethal means such as firearms, medications, or other dangerous items can help prevent suicide. The investigators invite parents and their teens aged 12 to 17 who visit the emergency department at Children's Medical Center Dallas for suicide-related reasons to join the study. After enrolling, families will be randomly assigned to one of three groups. The first group receives usual care, which includes standard counseling about keeping teens safe in the emergency room and no study text messages. The second group receives direct text messages three times a week with reminders about safety reminders. The third group receives risk-framing text messages three times a week, which include safety reminders and information about suicide risk following an emergency room visit to motivate parents to take action. The study measures whether these text messages help parents follow safety recommendations at home. Parents and teens complete short surveys at the start of the study, six weeks later, and twelve weeks later. The study also tracks whether the teen returns to the emergency department or attempts suicide again. The study aims to determine if text messages can increase parental safety practices, reduce teens' access to lethal means, and prevent future suicide attempts. UT Southwestern Medical Center and Children's Health Dallas conduct the study. Messages are delivered through a secure, HIPAA-compliant virtual platform to ensure privacy.
- Conditions
- Suicide, Suicide Attempt
- Being tested
- Text-messaging for safety reminders, Text-messaging with safety reminders and risk framing
- Keywords
- suicide, digital health, lethal means restriction
- Medical subject headings
- Suicide, Suicide, Attempted
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Text-messaging for safety remindersOther
The intervention consists of thrice-weekly, behaviorally informed text messages delivered to parents over six weeks period.
Text-messaging with safety reminders and risk framingOther
Thrice-weekly messages incorporating safety precautions and evidence-based suicide risk statistics to recalibrate parental risk perception.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Control Arm | No intervention | Treatment as usual (ED-based lethal means counseling) |
| Direct Nudge | Active comparator | Thrice-weekly direct text messages encouraging Lethal Mean Restriction practices. Receives: Other: Text-messaging for safety reminders |
| Risk-Framing Nudge Arm | Experimental | Thrice-weekly direct text messages encouraging Lethal Mean Restriction practices and suicide risk statistics to recalibrate parental risk perception Receives: Other: Text-messaging with safety reminders and risk framing |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Parent-reported adherence to lethal means restriction (LMR)
Change in parental adherence to lethal means restriction practices will be assessed using the Parent Adherence to Lethal Means Restriction (PA-LMR), a structured parent-report survey measuring adherence to multiple lethal means restriction behaviors. Items are rated on a Likert scale, with total scores ranging from 11 to 55; higher scores indicate greater adherence.
Measured: Baseline to 6 weeks
Secondary outcomes (1)
Adolescent Perceived Access to Lethal Means
Perceived Access to Lethal Means is a self-report measure assessing adolescents' perceptions of their access to potentially lethal methods. Items assess the perceived ease of access, with total scores ranging from 5 to 30; higher scores indicate greater perceived access to lethal means.
Measured: Baseline to 6 weeks
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted3 Feb 2026
- Study start10 Jun 2026
- Primary completion15 Aug 2027 (estimated)
- Study completion31 Aug 2027 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Publications (4)Papers the sponsor has linked to this study.
- Other trials for SuicideStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Single blind
- Who is masked
- Outcomes assessor
- Enrolment
- 129 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- The Texas Child Mental Health Care Consortium (TCMHCC)
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Rabia Ayvaci, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
- Investigators
- Emine Rabia Ayvaci, MD, Principal investigator, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07383714
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- STU20252399
- Other IDs
- GAA202508-0021
- Status last verified
- Sep 2026
- First submitted
- 26 Jan 2026
- Last updated
- 18 Sep 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No: No individual participant data is planned to be shared with other researchers.
Publications
Tversky A, Kahneman D. The framing of decisions and the psychology of choice. Science. 1981 Jan 30;211(4481):453-8. doi: 10.1126/science.7455683.
PubMed 7455683Bauer BW, Capron DW. How Behavioral Economics and Nudges Could Help Diminish Irrationality in Suicide-Related Decisions. Perspect Psychol Sci. 2020 Jan;15(1):44-61. doi: 10.1177/1745691619866463. Epub 2019 Nov 7.
PubMed 31697611Barber CW, Miller MJ. Reducing a suicidal person's access to lethal means of suicide: a research agenda. Am J Prev Med. 2014 Sep;47(3 Suppl 2):S264-72. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2014.05.028.
PubMed 25145749Marcus SC, Cullen SW, Xie M, Bridge JA, Caterino JM, Schmutte T, Olfson M. Evaluating the Effect of Routine Lethal Means Counseling in the Emergency Department on Suicide Mortality Among Mental Health Patients. AJPM Focus. 2025 Mar 19;4(4):100336. doi: 10.1016/j.focus.2025.100336. eCollection 2025 Aug.
PubMed 40688469
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 18 Sep 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Nudging Parental Action With A Randomized Controlled Trial of Text Messaging Intervention for Suicide Prevention
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07383714
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- STU20252399
- Conditions
- Suicide, Suicide Attempt
- Keywords
- suicide, digital health, lethal means restriction
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Recruiting
- Enrolment
- 129 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- University of Texas Southwestern Medical CenterUniversity, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- The Texas Child Mental Health Care Consortium (TCMHCC)
- Study start
- 10 Jun 2026 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 15 Aug 2027 (estimated)
- Study completion
- 31 Aug 2027 (estimated)
- First posted
- 3 Feb 2026 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
The goal of the study is to determine effectiveness of a behaviorally informed text messaging intervention to help parents increase safety practices and reduce their teens' access to lethal means following a suicide-related emergency department visit.
Detailed description
This study tests a text messaging program that helps parents keep their teens safe after a visit to the emergency department for suicidal thoughts or behavior. Adolescents face a higher risk of suicide after leaving the emergency department, and limiting access to lethal means such as firearms, medications, or other dangerous items can help prevent suicide. The investigators invite parents and their teens aged 12 to 17 who visit the emergency department at Children's Medical Center Dallas for suicide-related reasons to join the study. After enrolling, families will be randomly assigned to one of three groups. The first group receives usual care, which includes standard counseling about keeping teens safe in the emergency room and no study text messages. The second group receives direct text messages three times a week with reminders about safety reminders. The third group receives risk-framing text messages three times a week, which include safety reminders and information about suicide risk following an emergency room visit to motivate parents to take action. The study measures whether these text messages help parents follow safety recommendations at home. Parents and teens complete short surveys at the start of the study, six weeks later, and twelve weeks later. The study also tracks whether the teen returns to the emergency department or attempts suicide again. The study aims to determine if text messages can increase parental safety practices, reduce teens' access to lethal means, and prevent future suicide attempts. UT Southwestern Medical Center and Children's Health Dallas conduct the study. Messages are delivered through a secure, HIPAA-compliant virtual platform to ensure privacy.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- Single blind (outcomes assessor)
- Number of arms
- 3
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Control Arm | No intervention | –Treatment as usual (ED-based lethal means counseling) |
| Direct Nudge | Active comparator | Other: Text-messaging for safety remindersThrice-weekly direct text messages encouraging Lethal Mean Restriction practices. |
| Risk-Framing Nudge Arm | Experimental | Other: Text-messaging with safety reminders and risk framingThrice-weekly direct text messages encouraging Lethal Mean Restriction practices and suicide risk statistics to recalibrate parental risk perception |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 13 to 17 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Not accepted
- Age groups
- Child
Key inclusion criteria (6 listed)
- Guardian must be able and willing to provide informed consent, and the participant must be able and willing to provide assent.
- Parent and adolescent willingness and ability to participate in study procedures and complete assessments at baseline, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks.
- Presentation to the ED for a suicide-related emergency, defined as suicidal ideation within the last 2 weeks or a suicide attempt within the past month.
- Adolescents aged 12-17 years during the consent.
- Access to a mobile phone with text messaging capability for the parent/legal guardian.
Key exclusion criteria (6 listed)
- Absence of a legal guardian capable of providing consent.
- Parents/legal guardians without access to a mobile phone with texting capability.
- Inability to communicate in English.
- Adolescents in state custody or under legal restrictions that prevent study participation.
- Adolescents involved in the justice system in a manner that would interfere with study participation.
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| Text-messaging for safety remindersThe intervention consists of thrice-weekly, behaviorally informed text messages delivered to parents over six weeks period. | Other | Direct Nudge |
| Text-messaging with safety reminders and risk framingThrice-weekly messages incorporating safety precautions and evidence-based suicide risk statistics to recalibrate parental risk perception. | Other | Risk-Framing Nudge Arm |
Primary outcome
Parent-reported adherence to lethal means restriction (LMR)
Time frame: Baseline to 6 weeks
Change in parental adherence to lethal means restriction practices will be assessed using the Parent Adherence to Lethal Means Restriction (PA-LMR), a structured parent-report survey measuring adherence to multiple lethal means restriction behaviors. Items are rated on a Likert scale, with total scores ranging from 11 to 55; higher scores indicate greater adherence.
1 secondary outcome
Adolescent Perceived Access to Lethal Means
Time frame: Baseline to 6 weeks
Results and safety
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 18 Sep 2026.
- Background: PubMed 7455683Tversky A, Kahneman D. The framing of decisions and the psychology of choice. Science. 1981 Jan 30;211(4481):453-8. doi: 10.1126/science.7455683.
- Background: PubMed 31697611Bauer BW, Capron DW. How Behavioral Economics and Nudges Could Help Diminish Irrationality in Suicide-Related Decisions. Perspect Psychol Sci. 2020 Jan;15(1):44-61. doi: 10.1177/1745691619866463. Epub 2019 Nov 7.
- Background: PubMed 25145749Barber CW, Miller MJ. Reducing a suicidal person's access to lethal means of suicide: a research agenda. Am J Prev Med. 2014 Sep;47(3 Suppl 2):S264-72. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2014.05.028.
- Background: PubMed 40688469Marcus SC, Cullen SW, Xie M, Bridge JA, Caterino JM, Schmutte T, Olfson M. Evaluating the Effect of Routine Lethal Means Counseling in the Emergency Department on Suicide Mortality Among Mental Health Patients. AJPM Focus. 2025 Mar 19;4(4):100336. doi: 10.1016/j.focus.2025.100336. eCollection 2025 Aug.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: No. No individual participant data is planned to be shared with other researchers.
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part.
Emine Rabia Ayvaci, MD principal investigator
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Text-messaging for safety reminders and Text-messaging with safety reminders and risk framing in people with Suicide and Suicide Attempt, run by University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at 1 site in United States.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 6 inclusion and 6 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: looking for participants now, as of the sponsor's last update on 18 Sep 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
Contact Matthew Nguyen (469-509-2493, matthew.nguyen@UTSouthwestern.edu), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Parent-reported adherence to lethal means restriction (LMR) (time frame: Baseline to 6 weeks). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT07383714, which also lists 4 linked publications.
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 18 Sep 2026.