Goldilocks Work in home health care organized in self-governing teams
| ISRCTN | ISRCTN62296114 |
|---|---|
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN62296114 |
| Sponsor | National Research Centre for the Working Environment |
| Funders | The Danish Government through a grant to the FOR-SOSU program (SATS 2004), Danmarks Frie Forskningsfond |
- Submission date
- 19/02/2026
- Registration date
- 20/02/2026
- Last edited
- 20/02/2026
- Recruitment status
- Not yet recruiting
- Overall study status
- Ongoing
- Condition category
- Other
Plain English summary of protocol
Background and study aims
This study looks at whether a new approach called the Goldilocks Work intervention can be used successfully in home health care teams that organise themselves. The goal is to help workers achieve a “just right” balance of physical, mental, and social tasks in their daily work. By making work tasks more balanced, the study aims to improve workers’ overall health and well‑being.
Who can participate?
Teams can take part if they work as self‑governing home health care teams and have at least two subgroups. All employees in those teams who work day shifts can participate. People who only work night shifts are not included. Participants must be aged between 18 and 70.
What does the study involve?
Teams in the intervention group will start by completing a questionnaire. They will then take part in two workshops. In the first workshop, they learn about the Goldilocks Work principle and the dialogue tool that helps teams talk about how their tasks are shared. In the second workshop, smaller subgroups create action plans for how they will use the tool in their daily work.
Over the next eight weeks, teams use the tool as planned to adjust how tasks are distributed. After this period, participants complete a follow‑up questionnaire, and some will take part in interviews about their experience.
Teams in the control group will complete the questionnaires at the beginning and end of the study but will not take part in the workshops or use the tool.
What are the possible benefits and risks of participating?
A possible benefit is that workers may experience improvements in their physical, mental, and social well‑being by creating a better balance of work tasks. The intervention may also help teams improve communication about workload and working conditions.
There are no significant risks expected from taking part, as the intervention focuses on discussions and small changes to daily work routines. Some workers might find it challenging to adjust to new ways of organising tasks, but support is provided during the workshops.
Where is the study run from?
The study is run in Denmark and led from the National Research Centre for the Working Environment in Copenhagen.
When is the study starting and how long is it expected to run for?
The first participants are expected to join the study on 24 February 2026. The study is planned to finish by 1 December 2026.
Who is funding the study?
The study is funded by the Danish Government through a grant to the FOR‑SOSU programme and by the Independent Research Fund Denmark (Danmarks Frie Forskningsfond)
Who is the main contact?
The main contact for the study is Miss Kathrine Schmidt at the National Research Centre for the Working Environment in Copenhagen. Email: <kgs@nfa.dk>
Contact information
Principal investigator, Public, Scientific
Lersø Parkallé 105
Copenhagen
2100
Denmark
 ORCID ID |
0000-0001-8400-8349 |
|---|---|
| Phone | +45 29340263 |
| kgs@nfa.dk |
Study information
| Primary study design | Interventional | |
|---|---|---|
| Allocation | Non-randomized controlled trial | |
| Masking | Open (masking not used) | |
| Control | Active | |
| Assignment | Parallel | |
| Purpose | Prevention | |
| Scientific title | Implementing the Goldilocks Work principle among home health care workers organized in self-governing teams: A feasibility study | |
| Study objectives | Assess the feasibility of the newly developed Goldilocks Work intervention among home health care workers organized in self-governing teams. | |
| Ethics approval(s) | Ethics approval not required | |
| Health condition(s) or problem(s) studied | Work-related physical and psychosocial health challenges among home health care (HHC) workers. | |
| Intervention | The intervention is delivered at the team level (teams are divided into subgroups, each comprising approximately 12 workers) and aims to strengthen workers’ physical, mental, and social well-being by supporting a “just right” distribution of physical, mental, and social aspects of work tasks, using a newly developed dialogue tool (the Goldilocks Work dialogue tool). The purpose of the Goldilocks Work dialogue tool is to facilitate dialogue on HHC workers’ distribution and performance of physical work tasks (i.e. sedentary tasks, physically active tasks, and shifts between sedentary and physically active tasks), mental work tasks (i.e. mentally demanding tasks, mentally less demanding tasks, and shifts between mentally demanding and mentally less demanding tasks), and social work tasks (i.e. tasks performed alone, tasks performed together with colleagues, and shifts between working alone and together with colleagues). Based on this dialogue, the teams identify opportunities to redistribute or perform work tasks differently to move towards a more “just right” balance of the physical, mental, and social aspects of work tasks, in order to promote HHC workers’ health. The intervention is initiated with a baseline questionnaire, followed by two workshops (Workshop 1 and Workshop 2). In Workshop 1, workers are introduced to the Goldilocks Work principle and the Goldilocks Work dialogue tool. In Workshop 2, workers, in their subgroups, collaboratively develop action plans specifying when and how the Goldilocks Work dialogue tool will be integrated into their daily work practices. During the subsequent eight-week period, the intervention teams integrate the Goldilocks Work dialogue tool into their daily work practices in accordance with the action plans developed in Workshop 2. The intervention concludes with a follow-up questionnaire and qualitative interviews with selected workers. | |
| Intervention type | Behavioural | |
| Primary outcome measure(s) |
| |
| Key secondary outcome measure(s) |
| |
| Completion date | 01/12/2026 |
Eligibility
| Participant type(s) | |
|---|---|
| Age group | Mixed |
| Lower age limit | 18 Years |
| Upper age limit | 70 Years |
| Sex | All |
| Target sample size at registration | 120 |
| Key inclusion criteria | Team level: 1. Self-reported to be organized as self-governing teams 2. Teams comprising at least two subgroups Individual level: All employees within eligible teams working day shifts |
| Key exclusion criteria | Workers exclusively working night shifts. |
| Date of first enrolment | 24/02/2026 |
| Date of final enrolment | 01/12/2026 |
Locations
Countries of recruitment
- Denmark
Study participating centres
Results and Publications
| Individual participant data (IPD) Intention to share | No |
|---|---|
| IPD sharing plan summary | Not expected to be made available |
| IPD sharing plan |
Editorial Notes
20/02/2026: Trial's existence confirmed by Region Hovedstaden.
