Identifying Game-Based Digital Biomarkers of Cognitive Risk for Adolescent Substance Misuse: Protocol for a Proof-of-Concept Study.

Background: Adolescents at risk for substance misuse are rarely identified early due to existing barriers to screening that include the lack of time and privacy in clinic settings. Games can be used for screening and thus mitigate these barriers. Performance in a game is influenced by cognitive processes such as working memory and inhibitory control.

A Video Game Intervention to Prevent Opioid Misuse Among Older Adolescents: Development and Preimplementation Study.

Background: Opioid misuse and mental disorders are highly comorbid conditions. The ongoing substance misuse and mental health crises among adolescents in the United States underscores the importance of widely scalable substance misuse preventive interventions that also address mental health risks. Serious video games offer an engaging, widely scalable method for delivering and implementing preventive interventions.

A Serious Video Game Targeting HIV Testing and Counseling: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Purpose: Adolescents are the age group that is least likely to know their HIV status and may unknowingly transmit the virus to others. A randomized controlled trial was conducted to evaluate the impact of the original video game intervention, PlayTest!, on behavioral antecedents for HIV testing and counseling (HTC).

Methods: Participants (N = 287 adolescents) were recruited between 2018 and 2020 and were 48% female, aged 14-18 years (mean age = 15.

A digital health game to prevent opioid misuse and promote mental health in adolescents in school-based health settings: Protocol for the PlaySmart game randomized controlled trial.

Adolescents who engage in non-opioid substance misuse and/or experience mental health symptoms are at greater risk of misusing opioids and/or developing opioid use disorder. Adolescence is a critical developmental period to both prevent the initiation of opioid misuse and target mental health. To date, there are no digital health games targeting both conditions.