Testing Strategies for Increasing Exercise
Condition: Sedentary Lifestyle; Obesity
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      The purpose of the study is to learn more about effective ways to motivate people to increase
      their non-exercise energy expenditure exercise. This is an important research question
      because obesity and weight-related issues are increasingly becoming a problem in America.
      This project will address this research question by testing the effect of group dynamics in
      motivating employees who are predominantly sedentary to use Walkstations at work. The
      Walkstations are treadmills that move at a very slow rate (maximum 2miles / hour) and are
      attached to a work station (i.e. with computer and telephone); they therefore are designed to
      increase energy spent not through heavy exercise, but through small changes in posture and
      movement associated with routines in daily life (called nonexercise activity thermogenesis or
      NEAT). The proposed study is designed to build upon previous research (Levine et al., 2005)
      suggesting the role of NEAT-enhanced behaviors in weight loss.

      In this study, the investigators are interested in the impact of group dynamics on the
      propensity to use the Walkstations. Participants in the active arms will be asked to use the
      Walkstations for at least 3 hours per week. They will do so by signing up for a time slot.
      During their session, they will be asked to log into the scheduling system to indicate that
      they are using the Walkstation. Walkstation usage will be assessed by log-in data: employees
      will log-in to the phone and computer when they use the Walkstation. This log-in data is
      work-station specific; therefore the investigators will be able to tell when a given subject
      used the Walkstation.

      Subjects will be randomly assigned to one of three conditions:

        1. Individual. In the individual condition, participants will not be part of a team. They
           will receive weekly email feedback on their Walkstation performance (e.g. number of time
           slots they signed up for, and number of times they showed up for the time slot.)
           Participants will also receive a wellness tip in each email. (see appendix for a sample
           email)

        2. Pairs. In the pair condition, participants will be randomly assigned to a partner. They
           will receive the same feedback as those in the individual condition, for both themselves
           AND their partner.

        3. Group. In the group condition, participants will be randomly assigned to a group of 5
           people. They will receive the same feedback as those in the individual condition, for
           both themselves AND each member of their group.
    


Intervention name(s): Social walking intervention
Intervention type(s): Behavioral
Intervention description(s): In this intervention, we are interested in the impact of group dynamics on the propensity to use the Walkstations. The intervention consists of 4 levels: control, individual, pair, and group.
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention model: Factorial Assignment
Masking: None (Open Label)
Primary purpose: Treatment