Remote Interactive Intervention for Loneliness

NCT ID: NCT05459103

Last Updated: 2022-07-14

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: COMPLETED
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 100 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2021-09-01
• Study Completion Date: 2022-06-30

Brief Summary

Background:

During the COVID-19 pandemic, governments around the world adopted the practice of physical distancing, which increased the loneliness experienced by seniors and indirectly affected their quality of life and social support. Remote interaction through online social apps may be the safest and easiest way to address these problems. However, the empirical research on this issue is very limited.

Objective:

This study investigated the impact of a 12-week remote interaction intervention on loneliness, quality of life, and social support for seniors living in a community during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods:

This study adopted a randomized controlled trial design and was conducted in communities in central Taiwan. Participants in the intervention group received a 12-week bidirectional remote interaction intervention, while participants in the control group received a 12-week unidirectional remote interaction intervention. The study's primary assessment tools were the UCLA Loneliness Scale and the World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF Scale (WHOQOL-BREF). The secondary assessment tool was the Inventory of Socially Supportive Behavior.

Conditions

Older Adults

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH
• Blinding Strategy: SINGLE

Study Groups

Intervention group

Participants in the intervention group received a 12-week bidirectional remote interaction intervention.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Bidirectional remote interaction intervention

Intervention Type: OTHER

Intervention group participants engaged in a 12-week bidirectional remote interaction. All interactions were conducted through the same group on Line. A one-hour interactive online group intervention was held every Monday to Friday from 14:30 to 15:30, for a total of 60 hours. The online interactive interventions were conducted in a structured course format, with a facilitator conducting live classes and alternating between static and dynamic classes.

Control group

Participants in the control group received a 12-week unidirectional remote interaction intervention.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Unidirectional remote interaction intervention

Intervention Type: OTHER

Control group participants engaged in a 12-week unidirectional remote interaction. All interactions were conducted through the same group on Line. Research assistants posted a YouTube video on the Line group at 14:30 every day, Monday through Friday, covering art, music, senior sports, long-term care resources, travel, and food preparation.

Interventions

Bidirectional remote interaction intervention

Intervention group participants engaged in a 12-week bidirectional remote interaction. All interactions were conducted through the same group on Line. A one-hour interactive online group intervention was held every Monday to Friday from 14:30 to 15:30, for a total of 60 hours. The online interactive interventions were conducted in a structured course format, with a facilitator conducting live classes and alternating between static and dynamic classes.

Intervention Type: OTHER

Unidirectional remote interaction intervention

Control group participants engaged in a 12-week unidirectional remote interaction. All interactions were conducted through the same group on Line. Research assistants posted a YouTube video on the Line group at 14:30 every day, Monday through Friday, covering art, music, senior sports, long-term care resources, travel, and food preparation.

Intervention Type: OTHER

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• Participants had to satisfy several inclusion requirements. They had to (1) be seniors aged 65 years or older; (2) be able to communicate in Mandarin and Taiwanese; (3) have an MMSE score higher than 20 20 (following Chiang et al., 2010); (4) be able to use a smartphone; and (5) have no previous psychiatric diagnosis.

Exclusion Criteria

• The study excluded (1) those who were unable to understand how to use Line or YouTube; (2) participants in the experimental group who did not fully participate in the 12-week intervention (at least three days of interaction per week); (3) those who were unable to understand the content of the questionnaire or cooperate with those assigned to help them fill it in; and (4) those who had a major illness or surgery such as a fracture within the last three months.

• Minimum Eligible Age: 65 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 88 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Sponsors

Yang Shang-Yu

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Yang Shang-Yu

Assistant professor

Responsibility Role: SPONSOR_INVESTIGATOR

Locations

Asia Univeraity

Taichung, WuFeng, Taiwan

Countries

Taiwan

Other Identifiers

Remote interactive

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id