Effectiveness of a Web 2.0 Intervention to Increase Physical Activity in Real-World Settings: Randomized Ecological Trial

• Published in: Journal of medical Internet research 2017-11, Vol.19 (11), p.e390-e390
• Main Authors: Vandelanotte, Corneel, Kolt, Gregory S, Caperchione, Cristina M, Savage, Trevor N, Rosenkranz, Richard R, Maeder, Anthony J, Van Itallie, Anetta, Tague, Rhys, Oldmeadow, Christopher, Mummery, W Kerry, Duncan, Mitch J
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Aged; Analysis of covariance; Attrition; Body mass index; Clinical research; Clinical trials; Education, Distance - methods; Exercise; Exercise - physiology; Female; Friendship; Functional impairment; Generalizability; Humans; Internet; Internet - statistics & numerical data; Intervention; Male; Middle Aged; Missing data; Multiple imputation; Networking; Original Paper; Physical activity; Quality of life; Social networks; Social research; Translation; Web 2.0; Websites; Young Adult
• ISSN: 1438-8871; 1439-4456; 1438-8871
• DOI: 10.2196/jmir.8484

The translation of Web-based physical activity intervention research into the real world is lacking and becoming increasingly important. To compare usage and effectiveness, in real-world settings, of a traditional Web 1.0 Web-based physical activity intervention, providing limited interactivity, to a Web 2.0 Web-based physical activity intervention that includes interactive features, such as social networking (ie, status updates, online "friends," and personalized profile pages), blogs, and Google Maps mash-ups. Adults spontaneously signing up for the freely available 10,000 Steps website were randomized to the 10,000 Steps website (Web 1.0) or the newly developed WALK 2.0 website (Web 2.0). Physical activity (Active Australia Survey), quality of life (RAND 36), and body mass index (BMI) were assessed at baseline, 3 months, and 12 months. Website usage was measured continuously. Analyses of covariance were used to assess change over time in continuous outcome measures. Multiple imputation was used to deal with missing data. A total of 1328 participants completed baseline assessments. Only 3-month outcomes (224 completers) were analyzed due to high attrition at 12 months (77 completers). Web 2.0 group participants increased physical activity by 92.8 minutes per week more than those in the Web 1.0 group (95% CI 28.8-156.8; P=.005); their BMI values also decreased more (-1.03 kg/m2, 95% CI -1.65 to -0.41; P=.001). For quality of life, only the physical functioning domain score significantly improved more in the Web 2.0 group (3.6, 95% CI 1.7-5.5; P