An interventional study of UseIt! App and Coach in Problem Behavior and Child Behavior, sponsored by University of Pittsburgh. Active, not recruiting at 1 site in United States. Open to participants aged 5 Years to 8 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-11-05.
Sponsored by University of Pittsburgh · Not applicable, Interventional, and Health services research
In this project, the investigators aim to test the effectiveness of a mobile health (mHealth) system as a standalone versus coach-assisted intervention with the goal of achieving reach and scalability. Parents of children (ages 5-8) with disruptive behaviors (N = 324 subjects) will be randomly assigned to Group 1 (standalone app), Group 2 (coach-assisted app), or Group 3 (control app).
In this project, the investigators aim to test the effectiveness of a mobile health (mHealth) system as a standalone versus coach-assisted intervention with the goal of achieving reach and scalability. Aim 1 is to evaluate the effectiveness of the UseIt! mHealth system as both a standalone and coach-assisted intervention compared to a control app condition. Aim 2 is to assess target (parent management training/cognitive behavioral therapy skill acquisition and use) engagement and validation. Aim 3 is to evaluate the effectiveness of the components of the UseIt! mHealth system. The investigators plan to recruit an anticipated total of 324 families for the study. Families will be randomly assigned to Group 1 (standalone app), Group 2 (coach-assisted), or Group 3 (control app condition). Parents will use the app for four months before the administration of the post-treatment assessment. Parents will be trained to use the UseIt! mHealth system over the phone. The coach for the Group 2 condition will be a bachelor's level paraprofessional with a degree in psychology or an allied discipline (e.g., social work) who will provide support to parents. The system is very user friendly and families can be trained in approximately 30 minutes. Assessments will take place at Baseline, Post (4 months from baseline), and 6-month follow-up. All assessments will be conducted online (Qualtrics survey links sent via email by research staff) and take approximately 1 hour to complete.
178 studies on the registry are indexed under Problem Behavior; 47 are open to participants now.
This study's enrollment of 324 is above the median of 90 across 165 interventional studies indexed under Problem Behavior.
Browse Problem Behavior studies →University of Pittsburgh is the lead sponsor of 1,419 studies on the registry; 168 are open to participants now.
Of its 9 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 4 (44%) have results posted.
Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.
Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.
Exclusion Criteria:
Standalone parenting app called UseIt!
Behavioral: UseIt! App
Standalone parenting app called UseIt! plus a coach.
Behavioral: UseIt! App · Behavioral: Coach
Control condition: mindfulness app called SmilingMind.
Behavioral: SmilingMind App
The UseIt! app is a parenting app with evidence-based parent management content. The app runs on both Android and iOS devices. It includes a digital library of parent management skills, a trouble-shooting guide, a behavior diary, a point counter, and a skills-alarm.
The coach is be a bachelor's level paraprofessional with a degree in psychology or an allied discipline (e.g., social work) who provides support to parents. The coach will provide motivation and accountability but will not provide therapeutic/clinical support. The primary goal of the coach is to increase participant engagement with the UseIt! mHealth system.
The control app is a mindfulness app called SmilingMind. It is available for both Android and iOS devices.
Knowledge of Effective Parenting Test (KEPT)
Average scores from the Knowledge of Effective Parenting Test (KEPT). This is a 21-item scale, with higher scores indicating better outcomes.
Time frame: Post assessment (4 months after baseline).
Knowledge of Effective Parenting Test (KEPT)
Average scores from the Knowledge of Effective Parenting Test (KEPT). This is a 21-item scale, with higher scores indicating better outcomes.
Time frame: 6-month follow-up (10 months after baseline).
Parenting Skill Use Diary (PSUD)
Average scores from the Parenting Skill Use Diary (PSUD). This is a proportion score (range 0 to 1), with higher scores indicating better outcomes.
Time frame: Post assessment (4 months after baseline).
Parenting Skill Use Diary (PSUD)
Average scores from the Parenting Skill Use Diary (PSUD). This is a proportion score (range 0 to 1), with higher scores indicating better outcomes.
Time frame: 6-month follow-up (10 months after baseline).
Oppositional Defiant Disorder Subscale of the Vanderbilt Assessment
Average scores from the Oppositional Defiant Disorder Subscale of the Vanderbilt Assessment. Scores range from 0 to 24, with higher scores indicating worse outcomes.
Time frame: Post assessment (4 months after baseline).
Oppositional Defiant Disorder Subscale of the Vanderbilt Assessment
Average scores from the Oppositional Defiant Disorder Subscale of the Vanderbilt Assessment. Scores range from 0 to 24, with higher scores indicating worse outcomes.
Time frame: 6-month follow-up (10 months after baseline).
Conduct Disorder Subscale of the Vanderbilt Assessment
Average scores from the Conduct Disorder Subscale of the Vanderbilt Assessment. Scores range from 0 to 42, with higher scores indicating worse outcomes.
Time frame: Post assessment (4 months after baseline).
Conduct Disorder Subscale of the Vanderbilt Assessment
Average scores from the Conduct Disorder Subscale of the Vanderbilt Assessment. Scores range from 0 to 42, with higher scores indicating worse outcomes.
Time frame: 6-month follow-up (10 months after baseline).
PDFs hosted by the registry, ClinicalTrials.gov.
Plan to share: Yes — All data collected for this project will be made available to other researchers for future data mining, following publication of primary findings at the conclusion of the study. The investigators will share data with other investigators within and outside the University of Pittsburgh upon submission of a standardized written request. All data sharing will follow the guidelines and rules of the NIH and our IRB. Data (both raw data and summary scores) will be shared electronically (secure digital file) as de-identified data.
Supporting information: Study protocol
Time frame: Following publication of primary findings at the conclusion of the study.
Access criteria: To gain access, anyone not part of the original research protocol will submit a Data Analysis Request Form which requires elucidation of hypotheses to be tested and specific data requested. This form requires information about the investigator, including institutional affiliation, resume, proposed research, and conflict of interest statement. The investigator must document completion of the University of Pittsburgh Certification Program in Research Practice Fundamentals or a comparable training program at their own institution. Investigators outside the University of Pittsburgh must also complete a Data Use and Confidentiality Agreement before release of data to them.
Started Dec 2022 (actual). Primary completion is estimated for Feb 2027, 50 months after the start.
Of 111 non-industry interventional studies with no phase under Problem Behavior, half reached primary completion within 24 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 13 and three quarters within 51. This study's planned 50 months is above that.
Counting every sponsor, half of 112 studies reached it within 24 months; a quarter within 13 and three quarters within 51.
Since we started tracking on Sep 25, 2026, the dates moved once, on Nov 5, 2026: primary completion Oct 2026 → Feb 2027 and completion Apr 2027 → Feb 2027.
Earlier changes are on the record history on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.
From the registry record's own update history. This site started tracking changes on Sep 25, 2026; for anything earlier, see the record history on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
This study is active, not recruiting, as verified in Jun 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.
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