Optimizing a Just-in-Time Adaptive Intervention to Improve Dietary Adherence in Behavioral Obesity Treatment: Protocol for a Microrandomized Trial

Background Behavioral obesity treatment (BOT) is a gold standard approach to weight loss and reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease. However, frequent lapses from the recommended diet stymie weight loss and prevent individuals from actualizing the health benefits of BOT. There is a need for innovative treatment solutions to improve adherence to the prescribed diet in BOT. Objective The aim of this study is to optimize a smartphone-based just-in-time adaptive intervention (JITAI) that uses daily surveys to assess triggers for dietary lapses and deliver interventions when the risk of lapse is high. A microrandomized trial design will evaluate the efficacy of any interventions (ie, theory-driven or a generic alert to risk) on the proximal outcome of lapses during BOT, compare the effects of theory-driven interventions with generic risk alerts on the proximal outcome of lapse, and examine contextual moderators of interventions. Methods Adults with overweight or obesity and cardiovascular disease risk (n=159) will participate in a 6-month web-based BOT while using the JITAI to prevent dietary lapses. Each time the JITAI detects elevated lapse risk, the participant will be randomized to no intervention, a generic risk alert, or 1 of 4 theory-driven interventions (ie, enhanced education, building self-efficacy, fostering motivation, and improving self-regulation). The primary outcome will be the occurrence of lapse in the 2.5 hours following randomization. Contextual moderators of intervention efficacy will also be explored (eg, location and time of day). The data will inform an optimized JITAI that selects the theory-driven approach most likely to prevent lapses in a given moment. Results The recruitment for the microrandomized trial began on April 19, 2021, and is ongoing. Conclusions This study will optimize a JITAI for dietary lapses so that it empirically tailors the provision of evidence-based intervention to the individual and context. The finalized JITAI will be evaluated for efficacy in a future randomized controlled trial of distal health outcomes (eg, weight loss). Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04784585; http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04784585 International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) DERR1-10.2196/33568

Optimizing a Just-in-Time Adaptive Intervention to Improve Dietary Adherence in Behavioral Obesity Treatment: Protocol for a Microrandomized Trial (Preprint)

BACKGROUND Behavioral obesity treatment (BOT) is a gold standard approach to weight loss and reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease. However, frequent lapses from the recommended diet stymie weight loss and prevent individuals from actualizing the health benefits of BOT. There is a need for innovative treatment solutions to improve adherence to the prescribed diet in BOT. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study is to optimize a smartphone-based just-in-time adaptive intervention (JITAI) that uses daily surveys to assess triggers for dietary lapses and deliver interventions when the risk of lapse is high. A microrandomized trial design will evaluate the efficacy of any interventions (ie, theory-driven or a generic alert to risk) on the proximal outcome of lapses during BOT, compare the effects of theory-driven interventions with generic risk alerts on the proximal outcome of lapse, and examine contextual moderators of interventions. METHODS Adults with overweight or obesity and cardiovascular disease risk (n=159) will participate in a 6-month web-based BOT while using the JITAI to prevent dietary lapses. Each time the JITAI detects elevated lapse risk, the participant will be randomized to no intervention, a generic risk alert, or 1 of 4 theory-driven interventions (ie, enhanced education, building self-efficacy, fostering motivation, and improving self-regulation). The primary outcome will be the occurrence of lapse in the 2.5 hours following randomization. Contextual moderators of intervention efficacy will also be explored (eg, location and time of day). The data will inform an optimized JITAI that selects the theory-driven approach most likely to prevent lapses in a given moment. RESULTS The recruitment for the microrandomized trial began on April 19, 2021, and is ongoing. CONCLUSIONS This study will optimize a JITAI for dietary lapses so that it empirically tailors the provision of evidence-based intervention to the individual and context. The finalized JITAI will be evaluated for efficacy in a future randomized controlled trial of distal health outcomes (eg, weight loss). CLINICALTRIAL ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04784585; http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04784585 INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT DERR1-10.2196/33568

Diverse effects of team diversity: a review and framework of surface and deep-level diversity

PurposeWhile diversification within organisations is seen by many to be a strategic move, there is conflicting evidence about what makes diverse teams successful. The purpose of this paper is to highlight a range of complex, and in some cases contradictory, research contributions towards several key areas of diversity within teams, and to propose a framework for integrating existing approaches and clarifying inconsistencies in this domain.Design/methodology/approachA literature review was conducted to explore several key areas of surface and deep-level diversity in teams, with the discussion included in this paper highlighting many of the inconsistencies and complexities associated with this research domain.FindingsThis review highlights the need for future research to look at the effects of surface and deep-level diversity simultaneously, over time, across multiple levels and with a broad range of contextual moderators, to examine their impact on a range of outcomes.Originality/valueIn order to account for the complexities within diversity research, the authors propose the use of the job demands-resources (JDR) model which suggests possible explanations for inconsistent findings and bridges the gap between commonly used theoretical perspectives.

Network Selection and Influence Effects on Children’s and Adolescents’ Internalizing Behaviors and Peer Victimization: A Systematic Review

In interpersonal models of developmental psychopathology, friendships and affiliations with peershave been considered as both consequences and determinants of children’s and adolescents’ internalizing behaviors and peer victimization. Longitudinal stochastic actor-oriented models (SAOMs) allow developmental researchers to disentangle peer selection processes where children or adolescents choose friends who are similar to themselves in internalizing behaviors or peer victimization from peer influence processes where children or adolescents become more similar to their friends over time in internalizing behaviors or peer victimization. This paper highlights the methods and results from a systematic review that screened 1,447 empirical articles and located 28 using SAOMs to understand the interplay between peer social networks and internalizing behaviors or peer victimization. The results provide some evidence for both peer selection and influence related to depression, social anxiety, and peer victimization. Additionally, the results provide insight into directions for additional substantive and methodological research. Based on the findings of this review, future research is recommended that considers specific tests of peer selection and influence mechanisms, developmental and gender differences, individual and contextual moderators, multiplex relationships, methodological quality, and direct replication of prior studies.

Just beat it: Exploring the influences of competition and task-related factors in gamified learning environments

Understanding how each game element in isolation affects learners' motivation and contextual factors' moderator effects is needed to improve gamified interventions. Thus, this paper explored the impact of one of the most used game elements - Competition - on motivation and whether task-related contextual factors (e.g., familiarity with the task's subject) moderate that impact. In a within-subject quasi-experimental design, graduate students from an Artificial Intelligence course created a reflexive intelligent agent for a console-based fight simulator in a non-gamified condition. Then, they improved their agents to compete against their peers agents (gamified condition). Based on motivation levels measured in both conditions, we found that Competition was positive for students and that task-related contextual factors influenced that effect. Therefore, suggesting i) Competition alone can be positive for motivation and ii) contextual moderators should be considered in defining gamified designs.

Is Religion Always an Authoritarian Pursuit? Individual and Contextual Moderators of the Relationship Between Authoritarianism and Religiosity

Social scientists have devoted much attention to explaining individual and contextual variation in religiosity. Among other things, research suggests that authoritarianism is reliably associated with greater religiosity, whereas education and human development are associated with less religiosity. In this study, we explore the possibility that the relationship between authoritarianism and various indices of religiosity may be stronger in the presence of greater educational attainment and living in a society with a higher level of human development, even though the latter two variables are often thought to reduce religiosity: Using two large cross-cultural datasets from the World Values Survey, we find evidence that authoritarianism is more strongly associated with religious involvement and practice among individuals at higher levels of education and individuals living in societies with higher level of human development. In doing so, we demonstrate that the connection between authoritarianism and religiosity is contingent on both individual-level and societal moderators.