Active Games: Increasing the Attractiveness of Active Video Game Play for Youth

NCT ID: NCT02940431

Last Updated: 2025-04-11

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: COMPLETED
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 49 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2016-11-30
• Study Completion Date: 2018-05-04

Brief Summary

The purpose of this study is to look at the effects of active video game play on youth physical activity.

Detailed Description

Child obesity is increasing worldwide and has major implications for health, both during youth and later in life. Physical activity declines sharply during adolescence, making ages 8-12 a critical period to encourage healthy exercise habits. Increased childhood weight has been linked to sedentary leisure time activities, such as video games. "Active video games" (AVGs) are now being studied as a method to increase children's interest and participation in physical activity. Although research indicates that AVG play may lead to energy expenditure comparable to light/ moderate physical activity, children prefer sedentary video games to AVGs and often find AVGs boring. Children do not play AVGs as often or with the same intensity as traditional games/sports and lose interest in them; efforts must be made to increase the appeal of AVGs so they are competitive with sedentary video games. This study will examine whether children's motivation to engage in AVG play may be increased with greater autonomy, as well as whether increasing children's motivation to play AVGs also increases their motivation to play sedentary video games.

Conditions

Child; Overweight; Sedentary Lifestyle

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: FACTORIAL
• Primary Study Purpose: OTHER
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

High Autonomy

Children will choose active video games for use during the study.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

High Autonomy

Intervention Type: OTHER

Children will be given two active video games (AVGs) of their choice. After two weeks, a researcher will monitor progress and exchange the AVGs and sedentary games. At each exchange, children will be allowed to select their next game.

Low Autonomy

Children will be assigned active video games for use during the study.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Low Autonomy

Intervention Type: OTHER

Children will be given their most-liked active video game (AVG) from the baseline relative reinforcing value assessment. After two weeks, a researcher will monitor progress and exchange the AVGs and sedentary games. At each exchange, children will receive a pre-determined game.

Interventions

High Autonomy

Children will be given two active video games (AVGs) of their choice. After two weeks, a researcher will monitor progress and exchange the AVGs and sedentary games. At each exchange, children will be allowed to select their next game.

Intervention Type: OTHER

Low Autonomy

Children will be given their most-liked active video game (AVG) from the baseline relative reinforcing value assessment. After two weeks, a researcher will monitor progress and exchange the AVGs and sedentary games. At each exchange, children will receive a pre-determined game.

Intervention Type: OTHER

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• Sedentary lifestyle
• BMI between 5th and 95th percentile

Exclusion Criteria

• taking any medications that affect energy use or eating
• actively trying to lose weight
• has any medical conditions that prevent him/her from safely joining in physical activity
• exercises more than three times per week for one hour at a time
• does not engage in more than 14 hours per week of screen-based activities
• does not own an active video game system
• plays active video games more than 30 minutes per week

• Minimum Eligible Age: 8 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 12 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Sponsors

USDA Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center

FED

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Responsibility Role: SPONSOR

Principal Investigators

James N Roemmich, PhD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

USDA Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center

Locations

USDA Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center

Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States

Countries

United States

Other Identifiers

GFHNRC406

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id