Blake, Diane R.Lemay, Celeste A.Maranda, Louise S.Fortenberry, J. DennisKearney, Margaret H.Mazor, Kathleen M.2017-05-302017-05-302015-08Blake, D. R., Lemay, C. A., Maranda, L. S., Fortenberry, J. D., Kearney, M. H., & Mazor, K. M. (2015). Development and Evaluation of a Web-based Assent for Adolescents Considering an HIV Vaccine Trial. AIDS Care, 27(8), 1005–1013. http://doi.org/10.1080/09540121.2015.1024096https://hdl.handle.net/1805/12769HIV vaccine trials with minors will likely require parental permission and informed assent from adolescents. For this to be a valid process, the information needs to be presented in a manner that promotes adolescent comprehension. Previous studies suggest that adolescent comprehension of assent is often insufficient. We developed an interactive web-based assent that included interspersed quiz questions for a hypothetical HIV vaccine trial. Efficacy of the web-based assent was compared to a standard paper assent with and without interspersed questions. One hundred twenty teen participants, ages 15-17 years, from five community organizations were randomized to self-administered web-based assent (n=60) or investigator-administered paper assent with (n=29) or without (n=31) interspersed quiz questions. After reviewing the assent, participants completed a 27-item comprehension test. Comprehension scores were compared between groups. The mean number of correctly answered questions were 21.2 for the full paper group and 21.1 for the web-based group (t118=-0.08, p=0.94). Scores were 20.2 for the paper without interspersed questions sub-group and 22.1 for the paper with interspersed questions sub-group (t58=1.96, p=0.055). Participants in the web-based group performed as well on the comprehension test as those in the paper group, and those in the paper with questions sub-group performed better than those in the paper without questions sub-group, suggesting that interspersed quiz questions may improve understanding of a traditional paper assent. The minimal investigator time and standardized administration of the web-based assent as well as ability to tailor the assent discussion to topics identified by incorrect comprehension test responses are advantages worthy of further investigation.en-USPublisher PolicyHIV infection and AIDSAdolescenceClinical trialsComputer-assisted instructionInformed consentResearch ethicsArticle