School Worksite Weight Gain Prevention Intervention Study

The proposed site-level randomized trial will test the effectiveness of a work site intervention based on an ecological framework at preventing weight gain among high school employees in Massachusetts. The investigators hypothesis is that the intervention will positively impact healthy dietary patterns and physical activity, perceived organizational commitment, coworker influences, social support, self-efficacy, and self-control, which in turn will positively mediate or moderate the positive associations between the intervention and the primary outcomes (change in weight, BMI, and waist circumference). If effective, the intervention is designed to be generalizable to high school settings across the country and has the potential to reduce the morbidity, mortality and economic costs of overweight and obesity in this important population.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Obesity
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Step Ahead; Behavioral: Basic Intervention

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 844
• Phase: Phase 2; Phase 3

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Massachusetts
    • Worcester, Massachusetts, United States, 01655
      • University of Massachusetts Medical School

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: ADULT; OLDER_ADULT; CHILD
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• work at least 15 hours per week, or approximately half of the school week,
• only work at one school participating in the study,
• not be in a "leadership" position in the school (e.g. principals and vice-principals)
• be able to stand up
• speak English
• plan to be employed at the school for the next 24 months

Exclusion Criteria:

• work less than 15 hours per week
• work at more than one participating school
• work in a "leadership" position (e.g. principal or vice-principal)
• does not speak English
• unable to stand up

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: PREVENTION
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Interventional Model: PARALLEL
• Masking: SINGLE

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
EXPERIMENTAL: Step Ahead; Promotion of weight gain prevention among teachers and staff in public high schools through Step Ahead, a comprehensive intervention targeting three levels suggested by the ecological framework health behavior change: organizational school level, interpersonal level, and individual level.	Behavioral: Step Ahead; Promotion of weight gain prevention among teachers and staff in public high schools through Step Ahead, a comprehensive intervention targeting three levels suggested by the ecological framework health behavior change: organizational school level, interpersonal level, and individual level.
ACTIVE_COMPARATOR: Basic Intervention; Promotion of weight gain prevention among teachers and staff in public high schools through receipt of the workbook print materials and access to website similar to the enhanced intervention.	Behavioral: Basic Intervention; Promotion of weight gain prevention among teachers and staff in public high schools through receipt of the workbook print materials and access to website similar to the enhanced intervention.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
High school employee change in weight	Test the effectiveness of a worksite intervention based on an ecological framework at preventing an increase in weight among high school employees in Massachusetts	24 months post-baseline

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
High school employee change in BMI	Test the effectiveness of a worksite intervention based on an ecological framework at preventing an increase in BMI among high school employees in Massachusetts	24 months post-baseline
High School employee change in waist circumference	Test the effectiveness of a worksite intervention based on an ecological framework at preventing an increase in waist circumference among high school employees in Massachusetts	23 months post-baseline
Weight management behaviors	Test the effectiveness of a worksite intervention compared to the control condition on physical activity and healthy eating behaviors among high school employees in Massachusetts.	24 months post-baseline
High school employee absenteeism	Test the effectiveness of a work site intervention based on an ecological framework at preventing absenteeism among high school employees in Massachusetts.	24 months post-baseline

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Massachusetts, Worcester
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Stephenie Lemon, PhD, University of Massachusetts, Worcester

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• Wang ML, Haughton CF, Frisard C, Pbert L, Geer C, Lemon SC. Perceived weight status and weight change among a U.S. adult sample. Obesity (Silver Spring). 2017 Jan;25(1):223-228. doi: 10.1002/oby.21685. Epub 2016 Nov 15.
• Alker HJ, Wang ML, Pbert L, Thorsen N, Lemon SC. Impact of school staff health on work productivity in secondary schools in Massachusetts. J Sch Health. 2015 Jun;85(6):398-404. doi: 10.1111/josh.12266.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: July 1, 2009
• Primary Completion (ACTUAL): June 1, 2014
• Study Completion (ACTUAL): June 1, 2014

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: October 7, 2011
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 3, 2011
• First Posted (ESTIMATE): November 8, 2011

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (ESTIMATE): July 18, 2014
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 17, 2014
• Last Verified: July 1, 2014

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Exercise; Obesity; Diet; Intervention; Workplace
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Body Weight; Body Weight Changes; Weight Gain
• Other Study ID Numbers: R01CA132941 (NIH)