NCT05033184

Effectiveness of a Brief Internet-delivered Behaviour Change Intervention Among Healthy Middle-aged Adults

Effectiveness of a Brief Internet-delivered Behaviour Change Intervention Among Healthy Middle-aged Adults: A Randomized Controlled Trial

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 178 (actual)
• Sponsor: University of Regina · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 35 Years – 64 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

Previous studies have demonstrated the need to move beyond the common misconception of midlife as a time of crisis so that further understandings of the midlife as a time of opportunity for the maintenance and improvement of health can be developed. Several psychosocial factors such as resilience, emotion regulation, perceived social support, and control beliefs have been identified as having a role in the adoption of healthier lifestyle habits in middle age which, in turn, may decrease the risk of a developing or worsening chronic disease. Several behaviour change interventions have also been proposed in the literature. As Canada's population ages, it is important that brief behaviour change interventions, and the psychosocial factors that facilitate such behaviour changes, be identified as a way to promote better health during the midlife years so as to improve the experience of aging. The present study is aimed at evaluating the influence of psychosocial factors on the adoption of healthy lifestyle habits. Specifically, this study aims to examine whether differing experiences of social support, resilience, emotion regulation, and control beliefs influence physical activity levels following a brief behaviour change intervention. Participants will be asked to complete a demographics questionnaire followed by a series of measures to determine the individual's perceived levels of social support, resilience, emotion regulation, and control beliefs. After completing this set of questionnaires, participants will be randomly assigned to either an experimental or a control condition. Participants in the experimental condition will be asked to complete the Brief Action Planning exercise as a way to identify a goal related to health behaviours. Participants in the control condition will be asked to identify a goal related to health behaviours without being introduced to the Brief Action Planning exercise. Two weeks and four weeks following this intervention, individuals will be asked to indicate the degree to which they were able to achieve their health goal. It is expected that individuals in the experimental condition will experience greater improvement in physical activity levels compared to individuals in the control condition. The investigators also anticipate that improvements in physical activity levels in the experimental condition will be influenced by the psychosocial factors of social support, resilience, emotion regulation, and control beliefs. The potential significance of this study includes increasing awareness of the influence of psychosocial factors on health behaviours and the possible effectiveness of a brief behaviour change intervention among middle-aged adults. Potential interventions may be used in clinical settings or community programs in which middle-aged adults engage.

Conditions

• Health Behavior

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
BEHAVIORAL	Brief Action Planning Exercise	The Brief Action Planning exercise is a previously developed goal-setting exercise which has been designed to incorporate aspects of motivational interviewing such as compassion, acceptance, evocation, and partnership. It is a tool that allows participants to identify an aspect of their life they would like to improve upon and guides them through the process of making a specific, measurable, achievable, realistic, and timely (SMART) goal. It also assesses their confidence in achieving this goal so as to assist with making alternative plans if confidence is low.
BEHAVIORAL	Goal Setting Exercise	The Goal Setting exercise allows participants to identify an aspect of their life they would like to improve upon without incorporating aspects of motivational interviewing components or providing any guidance on how to set this goal.

Timeline

• Start date: 2021-10-01
• Primary completion: 2022-04-30
• Completion: 2022-08-31
• First posted: 2021-09-02
• Last updated: 2023-12-07

Locations

1 site across 1 country: Canada