Effects of Individual, Dyadic, and Collaborative Plans on Physical Activity in Partner-Partner Dyads

University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Warsaw

Status: Completed

Conditions: Health Behavior

Treatments: Behavioral: Individual Planning; Behavioral: Education; Behavioral: Dyadic Planning; Behavioral: Collaborative Planning

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT03011385

2014/15/B/HS6/00923_C

Details and patient eligibility

About

OBJECTIVE: The project aims at investigating of the effects of three types of planning (individual planning, collaborative planning, and dyadic planning) on physical activity among dyads.The influence of three planning interventions are compared with an active control condition, including physical activity education.

PARTICIPANTS: The effects of the interventions are evaluated among dyads of two adults (partner-partner dyads). Adults forming dyads (e.g. two romantic partners, two relatives, two co-workers, two friends) who are in regular contact for at least one year will be enrolled. A minimum of 50 dyads enrolled into the each arm of the trial (a total of 200 dyads). The interventions consist of six planning sessions.

DESIGN: The dyads are randomly assigned to one of four experimental conditions. The assessment of the main and secondary outcomes is conducted at the baseline, at 1 week after the first intervention session, at post-intervention (after six intervention sessions are completed), and at 6-, and 12-month follow-ups.

OUTCOMES: Physical activity constitutes the main outcome, whereas health-related quality of life (HRQOL), body mass index, and sedentary behavior as well as the self-regulatory strategy called the use of planning (individual, dyadic and collaborative) are secondary outcomes.

Full description

Individual planning (also known as implementation intentions or action and coping planning) is a regulatory strategy, which refers to making plans on when, where, and how to perform an intended behavior. In dyadic planning, a target person is setting plans together with a partner on when, where, and how the target person will individually engage in behavior change. The concept of dyadic planning differs from the conceptualization of collaborative plans, where two individuals make plans on how to enact a behavior together.

The study will evaluate the effects of a short-term planning intervention. The intervention includes a total of six sessions: two face-to-face sessions with the experimenter (delivered over two weeks) and three sessions delivered over phone (over the following three weeks), one face-two-face session (delivered at one month after the third session delivered over the phone). The delivery has an individual format (the experimenter + the dyad). The total time from first to sixth session is 2 months. The setting for the interventions will include physician's offices and participant's home. The same format, schedule, delivery, and setting will be used for conducting active control group procedures.

Enrollment: 640 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Both partners in the dyad are adults
• At least one partner in the dyad does not meet the World Health Organization guidelines for physical activity for their respective age group and health status
• Participants are healthy or with a diagnosed chronic illness (without contraindications for moderate intensity physical activity
• The partners may be a romantic relationship or in another relationship: next of kin, family members, friends who are willing to join the study together
• The dyadic partners are in the stable relationship for at least one year or meet and spend time together regularly for at least one year

Exclusion criteria

• Any existing diseases with contraindications for moderate intensity physical activity, confirmed by patient's primary care physician or a specialist in cardiovascular diseases/endocrinology/rehabilitation medicine providing care for the patient during the recruitment and follow-ups
• Both participants in the dyad meet the World Health Organization guidelines for physical activity for their respective age group and health status in terms of minutes per week, the intensity of physical activity, and the types of exercises

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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640 participants in 4 patient groups

Individual Planning

Experimental group

Description:

The planning materials and forms have sections: (a) information on the importance of planning, including examples of how planning works and what it affects, (b) instructions of what should be included in a good plan (the when, where, and how components), (c) formulating action and coping plans. Action plans (referring to when, when, and how the individual will act) as well as coping plans (referring to how to overcome potential difficulties, risky situations or temptations to not engage in physical activity) will be formed. Each participant will form their plans individually, without consulting the dyadic partner, but discussing the plans with the experimenter.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Education

Behavioral: Individual Planning

Dyadic Planning

Experimental group

Description:

The planning materials and forms have sections: (a) information on the importance of planning, including examples of how planning works and what it affects, (b) instructions of what should be included in a good plan (the when, where, and how components), (c) formulating action and coping plans. Action plans as well as coping plans will be formed. Both partners in the dyad jointly form one plan. This jointly developed plan is discussed with the experimenter. The plan focuses on physical activity of only one person in the dyad. This target person will be selected jointly by the participants if both participants are healthy. If one participant has a chronic disease, e.g. diabetes or a cardiovascular disease, the plans are formed for the person with a disease.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Education

Behavioral: Dyadic Planning

Collaborative Planning

Experimental group

Description:

The planning materials and forms have sections: (a) information on the importance of planning, including examples of how planning works and what it affects, (b) instructions of what should be included in a good plan (the when, where, and how components), (c) formulating action and coping plans. Action plans and coping plans will be formed. Both partners in the dyad jointly form one plan. This jointly developed plan is discussed with the experimenter. The plan focuses on physical activity of both persons within the dyad (both partners) and include some plans for joint physical activity.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Education

Behavioral: Collaborative Planning

Education

Active Comparator group

Description:

The education materials address physical activity and healthy nutrition guidelines for age groups and chronic disease. Participants receive a set of educational materials about types of physical activity (PA), PA intensity, exercise calorie expenditure, strength and endurance training, stretching, and general nutrition guidelines in terms of meal composition, and nutrients, meal frequency. The materials exclude any planning statements. The education is delivered by the experimenter to a partner-partner dyad and discusses individual guidelines for both dyadic partners.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Education