Moderators of design and delivery component effects on engagement with a digital parenting intervention: evidence from a factorial randomized trial in Tanzania

Janowski, Roselinde, Shenderovich, Yulia ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0254-3397, Wamoyi, Joyce, Stern, David, Lachman, Jamie M., Melendez-Torres, G. J. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9823-4790 and Cluver, Lucie D. 2026. Moderators of design and delivery component effects on engagement with a digital parenting intervention: evidence from a factorial randomized trial in Tanzania. Annals of Behavioral Medicine 60 (1) , kaag033. 10.1093/abm/kaag033

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Abstract

Lay Summary: Violence against children is a major global health concern, and parenting programs are among the most effective ways to prevent it. This study examined whether caregiver characteristics influenced how different design and delivery components affected engagement with ParentApp, a non-commercial smartphone app designed for caregivers of adolescents in low- and middle-income countries. A total of 614 caregivers from low-income communities in Tanzania used ParentApp over a 12-week period. Communities were randomly assigned to different combinations of app design and delivery components. These included app use supported by facilitator-led WhatsApp groups versus self-guided app use, app designs that varied in content access and illustration style, and enhanced versus basic app onboarding support. Women engaged more when they received an app design that provided immediate access to all content alongside culturally adapted illustrations. Older caregivers engaged more when they received WhatsApp group support or enhanced app onboarding support. Caregivers reporting depressive symptoms and those already practicing more positive parenting also engaged more with WhatsApp group support. Together, these findings suggest that tailoring design and delivery components to specific caregiver characteristics may enhance engagement and promote more equitable delivery of digital parenting interventions in low- and middle-income countries.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Published Online
Status:	Published
Schools:	Schools > Social Sciences (Includes Criminology and Education)
Additional Information:	License information from Publisher: LICENSE 1: URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/, Type: cc-by
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
ISSN:	0883-6612
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	24 June 2026
Date of Acceptance:	20 May 2026
Last Modified:	02 Aug 2026 12:03
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/187718

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