Efficacy of a Tailored Communication Intervention Aimed At Increasing the Number of Daily Steps

Efficacy of a Tailored Communication Intervention Aimed At Increasing the Number of Daily Steps

This study aims to evaluate the efficacy of a physical activity promotion intervention focused on walking behavior. The intervention is delivered via mobile application in a sample drawn from the healthy adult population.

A sample of sedentary adults will be invited to participate in a 30 days intervention delivered via a mobile app to achieve the goal of 7,000 daily steps.

Before and after the intervention, some crucial variables will be evaluated for the formation of the intention to change behavior and for the transition from intention to action (attitudes, subjective norms, self-efficacy, expectations related to change, risk perception, social support, planning) to compare two models of behavioral change.

During the intervention, messages will be sent daily, and the number of steps taken daily will be monitored. The aim is to compare the effectiveness of two types of communication in promoting a positive behavioral change: non-personalized communication centered on well-being (non-tailored communication) vs. personalized communication based on the psychological characteristics evaluated before the intervention (tailored communication). The physical activity carried out over 30 days by the participants who will receive the messages (tailored and non-tailored) will be compared with the physical activity carried out by participants who will not receive any messages (control group).

Inclusion Criteria:

• Participants from the general population, in good health and sedentary
• A level of education sufficient to understand the procedures of the study and to use a smartphone
• Having a smartphone

Exclusion Criteria:

• The participant always (or almost always) takes at least 7,000 steps a day
• The participant achieves an IPAQ score equal to or greater than 3000 MET-min / week
• The participant has symptoms or pathologies that could represent a contraindication to the physical activity proposed by the study. In particular
• Cardiovascular diseases for which physical activity is allowed only under medical supervision
• Chest pain during daily activities
• Drug treatment for cardiovascular diseases
• Severe arterial hypertension not pharmacologically controlled
• Episodes of loss of consciousness within the past 12 months
• Osteoarticular disorders that could be aggravated by a change in the level of physical activity
• Fractures of the lower limbs, vertebrae, or pelvis in the past six months
• Walking difficulty
• Respiratory insufficiency