Using Self-Motivating Messages to Encourage People to Exercise More

The investigators are interested in using personalized, self-motivating messages to motivate people to exercise more.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Physical Activity
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Drafting Motivational Messages; Behavioral: Control Reminders; Behavioral: Treatment Reminders

Detailed Description

The investigators are interested in using personalized, self-motivating messages to motivate people to exercise more. Through a partnership with a university, the investigators are running a large-scale, randomized field controlled trial aimed at increasing exercise frequencies during a 100-day challenge. The primary purpose of this study is to test whether sending people motivating messages they wrote to themselves in the past can keep them engaged in the challenge and motivate them to exercise more frequently. One week into the challenge, employees who have signed up for the challenge will receive an email inviting them to participate in a short activity. Employees who click on the link will be directed to a survey. Once they finish reading the first introductory page and click "next", they will be randomly assigned to one of two groups. In the control group, employees will be encouraged to write down what they think will motivate them to walk more after 20, 50, and 90 days into the Challenge. These employees will receive standard reminders on the 20th, 50th, and 90th day of the challenge. In the treatment group, employees will be encouraged to write down motivating messages that they will receive on the 20th, 50th, and 90th day of the Challenge.

All employees who are exposed to either the control or the treatment condition will be included in the analysis.

The investigators plan to explore moderators based on (a) employees' demographics (age, gender, ethnicity, position), (b) employees' participation in previous challenges, and (c) employees' health condition and fitness level prior to the challenge (such as how actively they have been participating in other wellness activities, their health statistics).

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 324
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Missouri
    • Saint Louis, Missouri, United States, 63108
      • Hengchen Dai

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Employees who click on the link inviting them to participate in an activity and are assigned to either the treatment or control condition

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Control; On the 20th, 50th, and 90th day of the Challenge, Wellness Connection will email employees who participate in this survey. Employees will receive standard reminders generated by Wellness Connection.	Behavioral: Drafting Motivational Messages; Write down three motivating messages; Behavioral: Control Reminders; Receive standard reminders at three points during the challenge
Experimental: Treatment; On the 20th, 50th, and 90th day of the Challenge, Wellness Connection will email employees who participate in this survey. Employees will see the motivating messages they wrote at the beginning of the Challenge, in addition to Wellness Connection's standard reminders.	Behavioral: Drafting Motivational Messages; Write down three motivating messages; Behavioral: Treatment Reminders; Receive reminders containing the messages they leave themselves at three points during the challenge

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Activity Level	Number of steps taken each day, as recorded in participants' online portal.	Through study completion, 100 days

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Body Mass Index (BMI)	Most recent BMI in pounds (weight) and inches (height) as entered by participant, an expected average of 2 months after study start. Obtaining the data is dependent on the ability to obtain the data from the online portal.	After the 100-day challenge ends
Cholesterol	Most recent total, low, and high cholesterol levels in mg/dl as entered by participant, an expected average of 2 months after study start. Obtaining the data is dependent on the ability to obtain the data from the online portal.	After the 100-day challenge ends
Blood Pressure	Most recent systolic and diastolic levels in mmHg as entered by participant, an expected average of 2 months after study start. Obtaining the data is dependent on the ability to obtain the data from the online portal.	After the 100-day challenge ends
Stress	Most recent self-reported stress level on a 1-5 scale (with 1 indicating "Relaxed" and 5 indicating "Highly Stressed") as entered by participant, an expected average of 2 months after study start. Obtaining the data is dependent on the ability to obtain the data from the online portal.	After the 100-day challenge ends

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Washington University School of Medicine
• Collaborators: University of California, Los Angeles
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Hengchen Dai, Ph.D, Washington University School of Medicine

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: September 1, 2016
• Primary Completion (Actual): December 1, 2016
• Study Completion (Actual): January 1, 2017

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: September 13, 2016
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: September 15, 2016
• First Posted (Estimate): September 16, 2016

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): May 9, 2017
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 8, 2017
• Last Verified: May 1, 2017

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Other Study ID Numbers: 2016080382