Using the efficacious iTRAC intervention to enhance emotion regulation competencies as a foundation, this study will create and test iTRAC-HERO to teach emotion regulation skills in the context of sexual health education.

Adolescence is a critical developmental period during which behavioral patterns are formed that have powerful influences on current and future health. This is particularly true for sexual behavior, which is affected by the biological changes of puberty as well as normative developmental tasks around sexual exploration. Engaging in sexual behavior in early adolescence (before age 15) is associated with more partners, less condom use, and more frequent sex as teens get older, and these factors increase risk for negative health outcomes (e.g., sexually transmitted infections and unplanned pregnancy) throughout their lives. Many sexual health interventions teach prevention skills, such as assertiveness or condom use; the premise of the current application is that these skills are often unused by adolescents because of deficits in emotion regulation (ER), which is unaddressed in most sexual health education. Our research team has developed and tested a novel, engaging, efficacious, and developmentally tailored group intervention (Project TRAC) to teach ER skills to early adolescents within the context of sexual health. A study of Project TRAC showed that participants taught ER skills were less likely to start having sex over the 2.5 year follow up. While efficacious, the small group format of the Adolescence is a critical developmental period during which behavioral patterns are formed that have powerful influences on current and future health. This is particularly true for sexual behavior, which is affected by the biological changes of puberty as well as normative developmental tasks around sexual exploration. Engaging in sexual behavior in early adolescence (before age 15) is associated with more partners, less condom use, and more frequent sex as teens get older, and these factors increase risk for negative health outcomes (e.g., sexually transmitted infections and unplanned pregnancy) throughout their lives. Many sexual health interventions teach prevention skills, such as assertiveness or condom use; the premise of the current trial is that these skills are often unused by adolescents because of deficits in emotion regulation (ER), which is un-addressed in most sexual health education. The research team has developed and tested a novel, engaging, efficacious, and developmentally tailored group intervention (Project TRAC) to teach ER skills to early adolescents within the context of sexual health. A study of Project TRAC showed that participants taught ER skills were less likely to start having sex over the 2.5 year follow up. While efficacious, the small group format of the program presents barriers to sustainability and dissemination; significant advantages of web-based delivery exist. To explore whether the ER concepts of TRAC could be taught in a web-based format, the investigators completed a pilot study to translate TRAC's ER content to a web-based intervention (iTRAC), using Designing for Dissemination principles that enhance the likelihood of successful dissemination upon completion. iTRAC demonstrated feasibility and acceptability, and a randomized trial showed that iTRAC participants reported significantly better emotional competence compared to waitlist control participants. This study will complete the technology adaptation of the program to include its sexual health content and content linking ER to sexual health. This phase will create iTRAC-HERO as a web app. Once completed, acceptability testing will be completed with early adolescents to allow for modifications based on participant feedback. Once finalized, a small RCT will assess impact on adolescents' self-efficacy for preventing sexual risk as well as engagement in sexual behaviors.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Attending 7th grade
• Between 12 and 14 years old
• Parent/guardian speaks English or Spanish
• Attending participating school

Exclusion Criteria:

• Unable to read at a 4th grade level
• Have a sibling who has participated in the study
• Have a development disorder

The investigators will prepare an archival-quality data package for upload to the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) Data and Specimen Hub (DASH). Specifically, the investigators will provide documentation on the full data-audit trail from the exact prompts seen by participants, to the syntax used to score and aggregate items, to the finalized data ready for use by qualified investigators. The archival-quality data package will also include a codebook in line with the Data Documentation Initiative (DDI) and contains information about variables, metadata, and file structure. The metadata will include description of the trial, including design, implementation, and description of the interventions. The intent is to provide everything that future investigators require to understand the trial, analyze the data, correctly interpret the findings, and be able to publish new analyses that meet current publication standards for clinical trials and/or meta-analyses.

After analyses are completed for the aims of the study.

The data package will be available for future investigators. For datasets that include potentially sensitive information, investigators not part of the original study will submit requests to be reviewed by the PIs. Qualified investigators who agree to terms of use and confidentiality agreements will be provided with deidentified data.