Meta Self-efficacy Internet Intervention to Support Occupational Health in Young Employees: Study Protocol for Co-creation and a Randomized Controlled Trial (Preprint)

BACKGROUND Supporting young employees as they navigate the changing workplace requires focus on personal resources. Although self-efficacy is a key and malleable resource, its context-specificity limits its applicability. To address this, we propose to target meta self-efficacy, a construct reflecting an individual’s ability to leverage self-efficacy sources (mastery experiences, vicarious experiences, persuasion, affective and physiological states) to build self-efficacy specific to any challenge, and in turn safeguard their occupational health. OBJECTIVE This protocol outlines a qualitative co-creation study and a Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT) of a meta self-efficacy-enhancing internet intervention. METHODS The co-creation phase will comprise four focus groups, where a total of N = 24 participants will contribute to meta self-efficacy-enhancing activities and refine an intervention prototype. To detect an effect size of d = 0.25, the RCT will employ a two-arm parallel design with a total N = 600, comparing the meta self-efficacy intervention against a placebo. Assessments will be conducted at posttest, 3- and 6-month follow-ups. Data will be analyzed with linear mixed effects models, following the intention-to-treat approach. The trial will also examine the impact of adherence and engagement on intervention outcomes and compare treatment credibility. RESULTS As of October 8th, 2025, the co-creation phase has begun and N = 16 participants have been recruited. The RCT has not yet started recruitment. CONCLUSIONS In comparison to the control, we expect the intervention to significantly improve young employees’ work self-efficacy (primary outcome) and occupational well-being, including job stress, job affective well-being, and work capabilities (secondary outcomes). If effective, the meta self-efficacy-enhancing intervention could bolster the ability to cope with various challenges in the health domain and beyond, extending the effect beyond the initial occupational context. CLINICALTRIAL ClinicalTrials.gov NCT06944990; https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT06944990