FitQuest: Does an active mobile phone game encourage children to take more exercise at school?

ISRCTN ISRCTN11693550
DOI https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN11693550
Secondary identifying numbers F12R10074
Submission date
23/02/2015
Registration date
04/03/2015
Last edited
04/04/2023
Recruitment status
No longer recruiting
Overall study status
Completed
Condition category
Other
Prospectively registered
Protocol
Statistical analysis plan
Results
Individual participant data

Plain English summary of protocol

Background and study aims
Physical activity has important health benefits for children, but many children do not meet recommended guidelines for the amount of physical activity they take each day. The purpose of this study is to investigate whether an active smart phone game (called FitQuest) which involves running in a playground can motivate children to become more enthusiastic about exercising, and whether that enthusiasm might change their behaviour.

Who can participate?
Year 7 pupils attending a state-funded primary school in Edinburgh, Scotland.

What does the study involve?
Schools are randomly allocated to one of two groups: Exergame group or no exergame group. Pupils from the schools in the exergame group play the FitQuest game during Physical Education lessons in their school for five weeks. Pupils from the schoos in the no exergame group take part in the normal Physical Education classes as provided by the school.

What are the possible benefits and risks of participating?
The potential benefits are improvements in confidence towards exercise and possibly increased levels of physical activity. The potential risks are very low - minor risk of tripping and falling similar to any out of door Physical Education class.

Where is the study run from?
Selected Edinburgh primary schools were invited to take part by development officers within Edinburgh City Council.

When is the study starting and how long is it expected to run for?
From May 2013 to May 2014.

Who is funding the study?
Funded by an Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
(EPSRC) Impact Acceleration Account at Heriot-Watt University. Note that the Principal Investigator has now moved to University of Edinburgh.

Who is the main contact?
Dr Judy Robertson
judy.robertson@ed.ac.uk

Study website

Contact information

Prof Judy Robertson
Public

School of Education
Simon Laurie House
University of Edinburgh
Edinburgh
EH8 8AQ
United Kingdom

Prof Judy Robertson
Scientific

School of Education
Simon Laurie House
University of Edinburgh
Edinburgh
EH8 8AQ
United Kingdom

Study information

Study designSingle centre interventional trial with a cluster randomised control design
Primary study designInterventional
Secondary study designCluster randomised trial
Study setting(s)School
Study typePrevention
Participant information sheet http://judyrobertson.typepad.com/judy_robertson/data-for-exergame-for-childrens-activity-rct-and-qualitative-study-paper.html
Scientific titleA cluster randomised trial and qualitative study of the effectiveness of a location-based exergame on school children’s physical activity
Study objectivesParticipants who use FitQuest (an exergame) for a 5 week intervention (for one hour per week during Physical Education lessons) will have increased step count, time spent in MVPA and self-efficacy scores post-test than participants who take part in normal Physical Education lessons as provided by the school.
Ethics approval(s)This study was approved by the School of Life Sciences Ethics Committee at Heriot-Watt University, Scotland on 04/09/13. Written permission to conduct a study in the schools was given by Edinburgh City Council, Scotland (25/06/2013).
Health condition(s) or problem(s) studiedThis study is about the promotion of sustained physical activity in children.
InterventionParticipants in the intervention arm played an exergame for one hour per week during Physical Education Lessons. Control arm participants took part in the normal Physical Education classes as provided by the school.
Intervention typeBehavioural
Primary outcome measure1. Step count (as measured by NL1000 accelerometer)
2. Minutes spent in MVPA (as measured by NL1000 accelerometer)
3. Self-Efficacy for physical activity, as measured by Pender questionnaire

All measures will be taken in the weeks immediately before and after the intervention (or equivalent time elapsed for control)
Secondary outcome measuresQualitative data will be gathered from interviews with children, teachers. Observation notes will be recorded at each session.
Overall study start date01/05/2013
Completion date01/05/2014

Eligibility

Participant type(s)Other
Age groupChild
Lower age limit10 Years
Upper age limit11 Years
SexBoth
Target number of participants10 clusters (5 intervention, 5 control), 30 participants per cluster.
Key inclusion criteria1. Primary seven pupils (usually aged 10-11)
2. Attending a state-funded primary school in Edinburgh, Scotland.
3. The school head teacher and PE must have agreed to take part.
4. Both male or female participants are eligible
Key exclusion criteriaLack of parental consent
Date of first enrolment01/06/2013
Date of final enrolment01/09/2014

Locations

Countries of recruitment

  • Scotland
  • United Kingdom

Study participating centre

Heriot-Watt University
Earl Mounbatten Building
Heriot Watt University
Edinburgh
EH14 4AS
United Kingdom

Sponsor information

Heriot-Watt University
University/education

Research Enterprise Services
Riccarton Campus
Edinburgh
EH14 4AS
Scotland
United Kingdom

ROR logo "ROR" https://ror.org/04mghma93

Funders

Funder type

Research council

Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council

No information available

Results and Publications

Intention to publish date01/04/2015
Individual participant data (IPD) Intention to shareYes
IPD sharing plan summaryOther
Publication and dissemination planThe results of the cluster RCT and qualitative study will be submitted to Public Library of Science
IPD sharing planNot provided at time of registration

Study outputs

Output type Details Date created Date added Peer reviewed? Patient-facing?
Results article results 22/08/2016 Yes No
Dataset FitQuest Qualitative DataSet 09/05/2016 04/04/2023 No No

Editorial Notes

04/04/2023: Link to dataset added.
08/06/2017: Publication reference added.