Brief reportPromoting Physical Activity Through Hand-Held Computer Technology
Introduction
Efforts to effect population-wide physical activity increases can be enhanced through the applications of state-of-the-art communication technologies.1, 2, 3 The computer interface allows for levels of ongoing individual tailoring and adaptation that may enhance intervention success.4, 5 Applications of hand-held computers to assess health behaviors in natural settings have gained increasing prominence.6, 7, 8 Yet, few studies have investigated the effects of hand-held computer interfaces in efforts to actually change health behaviors in the natural setting.3, 9 The goal of the Computerized Health Assessments in Real Time—Physical Activity (CHART-PA) pilot study was to investigate the impact of a behavioral intervention10 delivered via a hand-held computer (i.e., PDA) on short-term increases in moderate-intensity or more vigorous-intensity physical activity (MOD+PA) among an initially underactive sample of middle- and older-aged adults.
Section snippets
Study Design
Study eligibility consisted of the following: ≥50 years old; ≤60 min/week of MOD+PA over the previous 6 months and interested in learning ways to increase physical activity; free of medical conditions limiting participation in moderate-intensity activities; English language skills to enable informed consent and participate in study procedures; willing to use a PDA as directed; and willing to be randomized.
Recruitment occurred through local mass media outlets. Eligibility was determined through
Subjects
Sixty-nine adults were screened for participation and, of those, 37 attended a study orientation and were randomized to the study arms (PDA-based intervention [n=19], standard information control [n=18]).
All 37 participants completed the primary measure of interest (CHAMPS) at 8 weeks. Baseline data are shown in Table 1 for selected variables. There were no significant group differences at baseline. Ninety-three percent of participants had never used a PDA prior to the study (i.e., were novice
Discussion
In this first-generation study, intervention participants receiving a behavioral program delivered via PDA achieved significant increases in physical activity relative to controls, and the majority of participants found the PDA acceptable and enjoyable to use. The increases in MOD+PA reported on the CHAMPS questionnaire were reflected to some degree in the step-counter information reported by intervention participants, although the manner in which the pedometer data were collected (i.e., via
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