Study to Improve Adolescent Bicycling Safety

Completed · Not applicable

Conditions studied: Bicycling, Knowledge, Adolescent, Self Efficacy, Education, Attitudes, Practice, Safety, Behavior

In brief

This cluster randomized controlled trial will evaluate a community-based bicycle safety education program with and without an in-person parent training component. The investigators will recruit 180 early adolescent bicyclists (ages 9 to 12) and a parent/guardian from local neighborhood centers after school and summer programs, where the investigators have conducted preliminary studies. Randomization into the three study groups will occur at the site-level. Adolescent bicycles in all study group sites will be equipped with Pedal Portal, an innovative bicycle-mounted GPS/video system developed by the research team to objectively observe bicycling risk exposure and behaviors while bicycling. System data will be coded to measure bicycling exposure (hours, miles traveled, routes) and the types and rates of safety-relevant events (near crashes, crashes), and safety-relevant behaviors (e.g., following traffic rules, scanning for traffic at intersections). This will be the first randomized trial to use GPS and video technology to evaluate the effectiveness of a youth bicycle safety intervention in changing behavior. The control group will not receive any bicycle safety education programming. Participants in the first intervention group (Bike Club) will receive a 12-hour bicycle safety education program. Participants in the second intervention group (Bike Club Plus) will receive an enhanced version of the 12-hour bicycle safety education program which will include a parent training session on bicycling safety best practices, child development as it relates to bicycling, strategies for practice at home, and feedback on their adolescent's bicycling performance. The investigators' main hypotheses are that adolescents who receive the bicycle safety intervention will have increased safety behaviors (e.g., helmet use, hazard recognition), reduced errors (e.g., riding against traffic, swerving/wobbling), and increased knowledge, perceptions, and self-efficacy compared to the control group; and adolescents whose parent receives the parent training will have even greater improvements in study outcomes than those whose parents do not receive the training. If successful, approaches from this study could be widely implemented to improve adolescent bicycling safety.

Key facts

Study ID: NCT05265689
Run by: Cara J. Hamann
People needed: 195
Starts: 2022-05-27
Expected to finish: 2026-01-31
Last updated by the study team: 2026-02-20

Who can join

Age: 9 and older, up to 12. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: accepted.

You may qualify if…

9 to 12 years old.
Lives in Johnson County, Iowa.
Willing to participate in bicycling safety education program.
Adolescent has access to a bicycle and rides independently at least 2 times per week.
Fluency in English for the adolescent.
Fluency in English, French, or Spanish for at least one parent/guardian.
No siblings already enrolled in the study (only one adolescent per family will be enrolled).
Adolescent has not previously completed a formal bicycle safety education program
Legal guardianship of adolescent by at least one participating adult (thus excluding wards of the state).

You may not qualify if…

Does not agree to or meet one or more of the inclusion criteria
Having a condition which would be a safety risk on a bicycle or performing physical activity, including but not limited to a seizure disorder or mobility issue.

Where it is running

University of Iowa — Iowa City, Iowa, United States

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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