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OpenTrials
Completed

NCT Number: NCT06840600

Public Support for Prison Nutrition Standards

The goal of this experiment is to examine the impact of policy rationale on public support for prison nutrition standards. The main question this experiment aims to answer is:

Does the rationale provided for a policy to improve prison nutrition standards impact public support for such a policy?

Additionally, this experiment aims to answer:

To what extent are participant demographic characteristics correlated with public support for prison nutrition standards?

Completed

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Key information

Conditions

Healthy

Age range

18 year and older

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Chapel Hill, North Carolina, 27599, United States

About this study

This study aims to examine the impact of policy rationale on public support for prison nutrition standards. In an online survey, participants will be asked to imagine a new U.S. policy which would require prisons to serve meals that meet the government definition of healthy. Participants will then be randomly assigned to view 1 of 3 different rationales for the new policy, or be assigned to a control arm where no rationale is given. All participants will answer a question about support for the policy.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • At least 18 years of age
  • Report residing in the US
  • Can read and speak English
  • Have internet access to complete the online survey

Exclusion criteria

  • Under 18 years of age
  • Residing outside the US

Treatment and study plan

Public safety rationale

Behavioral

Rationale provided for policy is to increase community safety.

Right-to-health rationale

Behavioral

Rationale provided for policy is to support humans' right to healthy food.

Cost-saving rationale

Behavioral

Rationale provided for policy is to save the government money.

No rationale (Control)

Behavioral

In this arm, no rationale is provided for the policy.

Primary outcomes

  1. Policy Support

    Time frame: Assessed one-time via online survey immediately after participant views each policy rationale (exposure to study stimuli). Overall survey will take approximately 15 minutes.

    Policy support will be measured with an item that reads "Would you…" with response options on a 5-point scale ranging from "Strongly oppose this law" coded as 1, to "Strongly support this law", coded as 5. Higher scores indicate stronger policy support.

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Other

Collaborators

  • Stanford University

Registry information

Important dates

Study start
2025
Primary completion
2025
Study completion
2025
First posted
Feb 21, 2025
Registry last updated
Aug 12, 2025

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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