Abstract
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility and outcomes of the Engaged4Life program, an intervention to encourage inactive community-dwelling older adults to embed physical activity, cognitive activity, and social interaction into their everyday lives in contexts that are personally meaningful and natural for them. Fifteen participants were randomized to the intervention group (technology-assisted self-monitoring of daily activity via pedometers and daily tablet-based surveys; psychoeducation + goal-setting via a 3-hour workshop; and peer mentoring via phone 2×/week for 2.5 weeks) and 15 to the control (technology-assisted self-monitoring only). Recruitment was shown to be feasible and efficient, but not able to reach the target for men. Retention rate was 83% and participants manifested high adherence and engagement with the intervention. Though this pilot trial was not powered to demonstrate significant differences between groups, daily steps increased by 431 (11% increase) from baseline to Week 4 for the intervention (p < .05), but decreased by 458 for the control, for a net difference of 889 steps (p < .05). Findings were sustained at Week 8 (p < .01). In a future trial, difficulties in recruiting men, barriers due to the technology-intensive design, and the optimization of secondary outcome measures should be addressed.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 792-816 |
| Number of pages | 25 |
| Journal | Journal of Gerontological Social Work |
| Volume | 61 |
| Issue number | 8 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Nov 17 2018 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:We gratefully acknowledge support for this research from the National Institute on Aging, Boston Roybal Center for Active Lifestyle Interventions, RALI Boston [Grant # P30 AG048785]; and the Boston College Institute on Aging.
Funding Information:
We gratefully acknowledge support for this research from the National Institute on Aging, Boston Roybal Center for Active Lifestyle Interventions, RALI Boston [Grant # P30 AG048785]; and the Boston College Institute on Aging. The authors thank MaryBeth Duffy and the Waltham Council on Aging/Senior Center for their support as a community partner, David Guydan and Doug Dickson for their partnership in developing and implementing the intervention, Ellen Heller for facilitating the peer mentor training, Sue Ogle for facilitating the Engaged4Life Workshop, Katherine Raymond and Sarah Foss for their tireless work as research staff on the study, and Jean Scanlan and Effrat Ingram for their volunteer work on the project. And, most importantly, we are grateful to all of the study participants and peer mentors.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2018, © 2018 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.
Keywords
- Health behaviors
- interventions
- physical activity
- social support
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Social Sciences (miscellaneous)
- Nursing (miscellaneous)