NCT05466617

Gamified App on Increasing Physical Activity and Reducing Anxiety in Autism

Effects of a Gamified, Behavior Change Technique-Based Mobile App on Increasing Physical Activity and Reducing Anxiety in Adults With Autism Spectrum Disorder: Feasibility Randomized Controlled Trial

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 24 (actual)
• Sponsor: Indiana University · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

Background: Physical activity (PA) has an impact on physical and mental health in neurotypical populations, and addressing these variables may improve the prevalent burden of anxiety in adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Gamified mobile apps using behavior change techniques present a promising way of increasing PA and reducing sedentary time, thus reducing anxiety in adults with ASD. Objective: This study aimed to compare the effectiveness of a gamified and behavior change technique-based mobile app, PuzzleWalk, versus a commercially available app, Google Fit, on increasing PA and reducing sedentary time as an adjunct anxiety treatment for this population. Methods: A total of 24 adults with ASD were assigned to either the PuzzleWalk or Google Fit group for 5 weeks using a covariate-adaptive randomization design. PA and anxiety were assessed over 7 days at 3 different data collection periods (ie, baseline, intervention start, and intervention end) using triaxial accelerometers and the Beck Anxiety Inventory. Group differences in outcome variables were assessed using repeated-measures analysis of covariance, adjusting for age, sex, and BMI.

Conditions

• Autism Spectrum Disorder
• Physical Activity
• Anxiety
• Mobile Health

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
BEHAVIORAL	Mobile Health for Physical Activity Behavior Change	All participants received visualized step-by-step instructions (eg, search and download on Google Play or App Store, user registration, goal setting, and PA behavior tracking) on the assigned PA app (PuzzleWalk or Google Fit) and used it from the beginning of the intervention start (fourth week) until the end of the intervention (eighth week). Both the PuzzleWalk and Google Fit groups received reminders regarding the use of the PA app during the first week of the intervention period and autonomously continued to use the app until the intervention ended.

Timeline

• Start date: 2019-07-01
• Primary completion: 2020-03-15
• Completion: 2020-05-30
• First posted: 2022-07-20
• Last updated: 2022-07-20

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States