Digital Scaffolding for Self-Regulation: Using WhatsApp Reminders to Improve Sport Self-Efficacy in University Students (SportSelf-MCII)

February 17, 2026 updated by: Yalin Aygun, Inonu University

Digital Scaffolding for Self-Regulation: How WhatsApp Reminders Potentiate MCII to Boost University Students' Sport Self-Efficacy Beliefs

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn whether a self-regulation strategy called Mental Contrasting with Implementation Intentions (MCII) can improve university students' confidence in participating in tennis training. The study also examines whether adding WhatsApp reminder messages makes the strategy more effective.

The main questions it aims to answer are:

Does using MCII help students feel more confident about joining and continuing tennis training?

Do WhatsApp reminders increase the effect of MCII on sport self-efficacy?

Researchers compared two groups. One group used the MCII strategy alone, while the other group used MCII together with reminder messages sent through WhatsApp.

Participants were university students who were already enrolled in a tennis training program. Participants:

Completed a questionnaire about their self-efficacy before the study started

Took part in a four-week intervention during regular tennis training sessions

Completed MCII planning exercises before training sessions

Received WhatsApp reminders before sessions if assigned to the reminder group

Completed the same questionnaire again after the intervention

The study aims to better understand how simple digital reminders may support self-regulation and improve students' confidence to continue participating in sports.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

This study is grounded in self-regulation theory and investigates the effectiveness of a structured psychological strategy, Mental Contrasting with Implementation Intentions (MCII), in supporting self-efficacy related to university students' participation in tennis training. In addition, the study examines whether digitally delivered reminder prompts enhance the effectiveness of the MCII intervention compared with the standard MCII procedure alone.

The study used a two-arm randomized experimental design with pretest-posttest assessments. Participants were randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to one of two conditions: (1) MCII-only or (2) MCII combined with WhatsApp reminder prompts. Randomization was conducted using an SPSS-generated allocation sequence prepared by an independent researcher. Due to the behavioral nature of the intervention and the use of self-reported measures, blinding was not feasible.

The intervention was implemented over a four-week period within a structured university tennis training program. All participants received standardized instruction on the MCII strategy and completed structured MCII worksheets before training sessions. The worksheets guided participants through mental contrasting (identifying desired outcomes and possible obstacles) and implementation intentions (forming "if-then" action plans). Participants assigned to the digital reminder condition received structured WhatsApp prompts one day before scheduled sessions to support anticipatory self-regulation and preparation.

The primary aim of the study is to evaluate whether integrating low-cost digital reminders into a self-regulation intervention produces stronger improvements in self-efficacy compared with using MCII alone. The intervention was designed as a brief, low-intensity behavioral support strategy embedded within regular training activities rather than a standalone program. Data were collected at baseline and immediately after the intervention period using standardized self-report instruments, and analyses focused on within-group and between-group changes associated with intervention condition.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

22

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Turkey (Türkiye)
    • Battalgazi
      • Malatya, Battalgazi, Turkey (Türkiye), 44280
        • Inonu University

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Registered member of a university tennis club
  • Actively enrolled in a structured tennis training program
  • Aged 18 years or older
  • Voluntarily agreed to participate and provided informed consent
  • Completed baseline assessment procedures

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Did not complete the intervention protocol
  • Missed posttest assessment
  • Failed to complete required study measures
  • Withdrew participation during the study period

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Other
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: MCII
Participants completed Mental Contrasting with Implementation Intentions (MCII) exercises before training sessions using a structured worksheet designed for tennis training.
Behavioral: Mental Contrasting with Implementation Intentions (MCII)
Participants completed structured Mental Contrasting with Implementation Intentions (MCII) exercises before tennis training sessions. The intervention included identifying training-related goals, reflecting on potential obstacles, and creating specific if-then action plans to support self-regulation and goal-directed behavior.
Experimental: MCII + Reminders
Participants completed the same MCII exercises as the comparison group and additionally received structured WhatsApp reminder messages before scheduled training sessions.
Behavioral: MCII + WhatsApp Reminders
Participants completed standardized Mental Contrasting with Implementation Intentions (MCII) exercises before tennis training sessions. In addition, they received structured WhatsApp reminder messages one day before each scheduled session to prompt mental preparation and reinforce engagement with the MCII self-regulation strategy. The reminder messages were the only procedural difference from the MCII-only intervention.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSES) Score
Time Frame: Baseline and immediately after the 4-week intervention
Self-efficacy was measured using the General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSES), a 10-item self-report instrument assessing participants' perceived ability to cope with challenges and perform goal-directed behaviors. Scores were collected at baseline (pretest) and immediately after completion of the 4-week intervention period (posttest). Higher scores indicate greater perceived self-efficacy.
Baseline and immediately after the 4-week intervention

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Inonu University

Collaborators

Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Yalin Aygun, PhD, Inonu University

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

January 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Actual)

February 7, 2026

Study Completion (Actual)

February 7, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

February 17, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

February 17, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

February 23, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

February 23, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

February 17, 2026

Last Verified

February 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 02/14
  • PNURSP2026R424 (Other Grant/Funding Number: Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University Researchers Supporting Project)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

IPD Plan Description

De-identified individual participant data used for the primary analyses will be shared. This includes baseline and post-intervention self-efficacy scores, group allocation, and relevant demographic variables collected during the study.

IPD Sharing Time Frame

Beginning 6 months after publication and continuing for 5 years.

IPD Sharing Access Criteria

Access will be granted to qualified researchers upon reasonable request to the corresponding author. Requests will be reviewed based on scientific merit, and data will be shared in de-identified form for research purposes only.

IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type

  • STUDY_PROTOCOL
  • ANALYTIC_CODE

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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