scholarly journals Content and Feature Preferences for a Physical Activity App for Adults With Physical Disabilities: Focus Group Study (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara H Olsen ◽  
Sandra L Saperstein ◽  
Robert S Gold
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Focus Group ◽  
Behavior Change ◽  
Mobile Phone ◽  
User Experience ◽  
Physical Disabilities ◽  
Large Population ◽  
User Preferences ◽  
Fitness Tracking ◽  
People With Physical Disabilities

BACKGROUND Hundreds of thousands of mobile phone apps intended to improve health and fitness are available for download across platforms and operating systems; however, few have been designed with people with physical disabilities in mind, ignoring a large population that may benefit from an effective tool to increase physical activity. OBJECTIVE This study represents the first phase in the development process of a fitness tracking app for people with physical disabilities interested in nontraditional sport. The aim of this research was to explore user preferences for content, appearance, and operational features of a proposed physical activity app for people with physical disabilities to inform the design of a mobile phone app for increasing physical activity. METHODS Four focus groups were conducted with 15 adults with physical disabilities who currently participate in nontraditional, non-Paralympic sport. Data collected from the focus group sessions centered on content, functionality, and appearance of apps currently used by participants as well as preferences for a future app. RESULTS Participants (mean age 35.7, SD 9.2 years) were mostly white (13/15, 87%), and all were currently participating in CrossFit and at least one other sport. Five main themes were identified. Themes included preferences for (1) workout-specific features that were tailored or searchable by disability, (2) user experience that was intuitive and accessible, (3) profile personalization options, (4) gamification features that allowed for competition with self and other users, and (5) social features that allowed increased interaction among users. Participants expressed a primary interest in having a fitness app that was designed for people with physical disabilities such that the features present in other fitness tracking apps were relevant to them and their community of adaptive athletes. CONCLUSIONS The results showed that features related to user experience, social engagement, and gamification are considered important to people with physical disabilities. Features highlighted by participants as most desired, from a consumer perspective, were in line with research identifying attributes of quality apps that use behavior change techniques to influence positive physical activity behavior change. Such insights should inform the development of any fitness app designed to integrate users with disabilities as a primary user base.

scholarly journals Potential and effects of personalizing gameful fitness applications using behavior change intentions and Hexad user types

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maximilian Altmeyer ◽  
Pascal Lessel ◽  
Subhashini Jantwal ◽  
Linda Muller ◽  
Florian Daiber ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Behavior Change ◽  
User Experience ◽  
Design Elements ◽  
Online Study ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Two Factors ◽  
Study Support ◽  
Affective Experiences ◽  
Relevant Domain

AbstractPersonalizing gameful applications is essential to account for interpersonal differences in the perception of gameful design elements. Considering that an increasing number of people lead sedentary lifestyles, using personalized gameful applications to encourage physical activity is a particularly relevant domain. In this article, we investigate behavior change intentions and Hexad user types as factors to personalize gameful fitness applications. We first explored the potential of these two factors by analyzing differences in the perceived persuasiveness of gameful design elements using a storyboards-based online study ($$N=178$$ N = 178 ). Our results show several significant effects regarding both factors and thus support the usefulness of them in explaining perceptual differences. Based on these findings, we implemented “Endless Universe,” a personalized gameful application encouraging physical activity on a treadmill. We used the system in a laboratory study ($$N=20$$ N = 20 ) to study actual effects of personalization on the users’ performance, enjoyment and affective experiences. While we did not find effects on the immediate performance of users, positive effects on user experience-related measures were found. The results of this study support the relevance of behavior change intentions and Hexad user types for personalizing gameful fitness systems further.

scholarly journals Effectiveness of a 3-Month Mobile Phone–Based Behavior Change Program on Active Transportation and Physical Activity in Adults: Randomized Controlled Trial (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Ek ◽  
Christina Alexandrou ◽  
Emmie Söderström ◽  
Patrick Bergman ◽  
Christine Delisle Nyström ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Randomized Controlled Trial ◽  
Behavior Change ◽  
Mobile Phone ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Vigorous Physical Activity ◽  
Intervention Group ◽  
Active Transportation ◽  
Randomized Controlled ◽  
Behavior Change Program

BACKGROUND Active transportation (AT; ie, walking and cycling as a mode for transportation) has been associated with decreased morbidity and mortality; however, low-cost and scalable intervention programs are lacking. OBJECTIVE The goal of the research was to determine the effectiveness of a 3-month behavior change program delivered via a mobile phone app to promote AT (TravelVu Plus) on time spent in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA). METHODS For this 2-arm parallel randomized controlled trial, we recruited a population-based sample of 254 adults from Stockholm County who were aged 20 to 65 years and had access to a smartphone. On completion of 1-week baseline measures, the 254 participants were randomized to either the control or intervention group (1:1 ratio). Both groups had access to the standard TravelVu app (Trivector AB) for monitoring their AT for 6 months. The intervention group also received a 3-month behavior change program to promote AT (TravelVu Plus app). Assessors of outcomes were blinded to group allocation. Outcomes were objectively measured MVPA at 3 (primary) and 6 months. Secondary outcomes were AT, attitudes toward AT, and health-related quality of life at 3 and 6 months. RESULTS No effect on MVPA was observed after 3 months (<i>P</i>=.29); however, at 6 months the intervention group had a greater improvement in MVPA than the controls (6.05 minutes per day [95% CI 0.36 to 11.74; <i>P</i>=.04]). A Bayesian analyses showed that there was a 98% probability that the intervention had any effect at 6 months, and a 63% probability that this effect was &gt;5 minute MVPA per day. CONCLUSIONS No effect on MVPA immediately after the intervention period (at 3 months) was observed; however, there was a delayed effect on MVPA (6 minutes per day) at 6 months, which corresponds to approximately 30% of the weekly MVPA recommendation. Our findings suggest that a behavior change program promoting AT delivered via an app may have a relevant effect on PA. CLINICALTRIAL ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03086837; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03086837 INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT RR2-10.1186/s12889-018-5658-4

scholarly journals A Digital Intervention for Australian Adolescents Above a Healthy Weight (Health Online for Teens): Protocol for an Implementation and User Experience Study

10.2196/13340 ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (10) ◽  
pp. e13340
Author(s):  
Carly Jane Moores ◽  
Anthony Maeder ◽  
Jacqueline Miller ◽  
Ivanka Prichard ◽  
Lucy Kate Lewis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Behavior Change ◽  
User Experience ◽  
Healthy Lifestyle ◽  
Life Stage ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Trial Registration ◽  
Lifestyle Behaviors ◽  
Healthy Weight ◽  
Lifestyle Behavior

Background More than one-fourth of Australian adolescents are overweight or obese, with obesity in adolescents strongly persisting into adulthood. Recent evidence suggests that the mid-teen years present a final window of opportunity to prevent irreversible damage to the cardiovascular system. As lifestyle behaviors may change with increased autonomy during adolescence, this life stage is an ideal time to intervene and promote healthy eating and physical activity behaviors, well-being, and self-esteem. As teenagers are prolific users and innate adopters of new technologies, app-based programs may be suitable for the promotion of healthy lifestyle behaviors and goal setting training. Objective This study aims to explore the reach, engagement, user experience, and satisfaction of the new app-based and Web-based Health Online for Teens (HOT) program in a sample of Australian adolescents above a healthy weight (ie, overweight or obese) and their parents. Methods HOT is a 14-week program for adolescents and their parents. The program is delivered online through the Moodle app–based and website-based learning environment and aims to promote adolescents’ lifestyle behavior change in line with Australian Dietary Guidelines and Australia’s Physical Activity and Sedentary Behaviour Guidelines for Young People (aged 13-17 years). HOT aims to build parental and peer support during the program to support adolescents with healthy lifestyle behavior change. Results Data collection for this study is ongoing. To date, 35 adolescents and their parents have participated in one of 3 groups. Conclusions HOT is a new online-only program for Australian adolescents and their parents that aims to reduce cardiovascular disease risk factors. This protocol paper describes the HOT program in detail, along with the methods to measure reach, outcomes, engagement, user experiences, and program satisfaction. Trial Registration Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry ACTRN12618000465257; https://www.anzctr.org.au/Trial/Registration/TrialReview.aspx?id=374771 International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) DERR1-10.2196/13340

Leisure-time physical activity, coping and life satisfaction among Korean individuals with physical disabilities

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Junhyoung Kim ◽  
Jaehyun Kim ◽  
Areum Han
Keyword(s):  
Physical Activity ◽  
Life Satisfaction ◽  
Coping Strategies ◽  
Leisure Time ◽  
Leisure Time Physical Activity ◽  
Physical Disabilities ◽  
Healthcare Providers ◽  
Sampling Strategy ◽  
Study Find ◽  
People With Physical Disabilities

Summary A few studies explored the relationships among leisure-time physical activity (LTPA), coping, and life satisfaction among individuals with physical disabilities. This study aims to investigate how LPTA contributes to coping and life satisfaction among Korean individuals with physical disabilities. Using a purposive sampling strategy, a total of 351 people with physical disabilities participated in this study. The results of this study find that participation in LTPA leads to the development of active coping strategies that contribute to increased life satisfaction. This study suggests that encouraging LTPA participation can be a critical task to healthcare providers working with individuals with physical disabilities.

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