Developing a web-based program for physical education teachers and parents to teach them how to interact with children in a need-supportive way to encourage them to be physically active
| ISRCTN | ISRCTN78373974 |
|---|---|
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN78373974 |
| Secondary identifying numbers | Version 2 (2022/08) |
- Submission date
- 14/12/2022
- Registration date
- 15/12/2022
- Last edited
- 11/06/2024
- Recruitment status
- No longer recruiting
- Overall study status
- Completed
- Condition category
- Other
Plain English Summary
Background and study aims
Although the benefits of physical activity and the detrimental effects of inactivity are known, most children and adolescents to not meet the recommended activity level – WHO suggests that this age group get at least 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity daily. As many non-communicable diseases have roots in childhood and exercise habits tend to carry over into adulthood, it is important to find ways to promote physical activity in children and adolescents.
One way to increase children’s internal motivation towards physical activity is to ensure their basic psychological needs – autonomy, competence, and relatedness – are satisfied regarding physical activity. Numerous need-supportive intervention studies in the school setting have proven to be effective in increasing student’s physical activity related outcomes. The home setting has not been so extensively studied.
In this study we will test the effectiveness of web-based programs for physical education teachers and parents that teach them to be more need-supportive in the interaction with children. We will compare the effects of three combinations of programs – teacher only, parent only and combined teacher- and parent study programs. We assume that both the teacher only and parent only programs will be effective in increasing adolescents’ motivation towards and actual participation in out-of-school physical activity. We also assume that the combined intervention group, where both teachers and parents are trained, will be the most effective.
Who can participate?
Children in grades 6-7 aged between 12 and 13 years (at baseline)
What does the study involve?
Grade 6-7 students will be divided into 4 intervention groups:
1. Teacher-delivered intervention group – physical education teachers will complete an online training covering need-supportive communication techniques
2. Parent-delivered intervention group – parents will complete an online training covering need-supportive communication techniques
3. Combined teacher- and parent-delivered intervention group – both physical education teachers and parents will complete an online training covering need-supportive communication techniques
4. Waitlist control group - physical education teachers and parents continue interacting with children as they usually do
The teachers and parents in the experimental groups will have access to web-based learning platforms that guide participants through the six-week training program. The program aims to teach participants need-supportive communication techniques, so that the children will be more motivated to be physically active in their leisure time. All the training material will be presented to the teachers and parents via short video lectures, and they are encouraged to put the techniques into practice.
We will measure the physical activity of students on four occasions – before the training program begins (baseline values), directly after the training program, 1 month after the end of the training program and 5 months after the end of the training program.
What are the possible benefits and risks of participating?
The possible benefit to students taking part in this study is that their physical education teachers and parents adopt need-supportive communication techniques that should help them be physically more active and healthier.
The research does not harm the subjects mentally nor physically. Invasive research methods will not be used.
Where is the study run from?
University of Tartu, Estonia
When is the study starting and how long is it expected to run for?
September 2020 to May 2024
Who is funding the study?
Institute of Sport Sciences and Physiotherapy, University of Tartu (Estonia)
Who is the main contact?
Pille-Riin Meerits
pille-riin.meerits@ut.ee
Contact information
Principal Investigator
Institute of Sport Sciences and Physiotherapy
University of Tartu
Ujula 4
Tartu
51008
Estonia
 ORCID ID |
0000-0002-2011-8650 |
|---|---|
| Phone | +372 524 2656 |
| andre.koka@ut.ee |
Public
Institute of Sport Sciences and Physiotherapy
University of Tartu
Ujula 4
Tartu
51008
Estonia
| ORCID ID |
0000-0001-9622-2115 |
|---|---|
| Phone | +372 5088310 |
| pille-riin.meerits@ut.ee |
Scientific
Institute of Sport Sciences and Physiotherapy
University of Tartu
Ujula 4
Tartu
51008
Estonia
| Phone | +372 5088310 |
|---|---|
| pille-riin.meerits@ut.ee |
Study information
| Study design | Single-center interventional single-blinded randomized controlled trial |
|---|---|
| Primary study design | Interventional |
| Secondary study design | Randomised controlled trial |
| Study setting(s) | Home |
| Study type | Other |
| Participant information sheet | 42903 PIS Consent form for school.pdf |
| Scientific title | Fostering need-supportive behaviors in physical education teachers and parents: a cluster randomized controlled trial study protocol of a web-based intervention on secondary school students’ physical activity |
| Study hypothesis | 1. We expect to find that the PE teacher-delivered and parent-delivered components of the need-supportive intervention have an effect on Grade 6-7 students’ PA. 2. We expect an interaction effect of the teacher- and parent-delivered components of the intervention such that students assigned to receive both the teacher- and parent-delivered components exhibit the greatest increase in PA participation compared to students assigned to receive either component alone and students assigned to the control condition that do not receive either component. |
| Ethics approval(s) | Approved 19/10/2020, Research Ethics Committee of the University of Tartu (Raekoja plats 9–316, 51004 Tartu, Estonia; +372 737 6215; eetikakomitee@ut.ee), ref: 327/T-4, 19.10.2020 |
| Condition | Leisure-time physical activity of students |
| Intervention | 3 intervention groups will be compared against one control condition (4 groups in total): 1. Teacher-delivered intervention group 2. Parent-delivered intervention group 3. Combined teacher- and parent-delivered intervention group 4. Waitlist control group Randomization is done by schools and the study involves Grade 6-7 students. Their physical education (PE) teachers and parents will be assigned either to participate in a six-week web-based need-supportive intervention program or to continue teaching and parenting as they currently do (i.e., control group). Students are blinded to allocation. The PE teachers and parents in the experimental conditions will have access to web-based learning platforms developed for this project that guide participants through the six-week training program. The programs aim to familiarize participants with techniques directed at promoting children’s autonomous motivation towards out-of-school physical activity. All the training material will be presented to the participants via short video lectures. |
| Intervention type | Behavioural |
| Primary outcome measure | The students’ participation in out-of-school moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) measured by self-report questionnaires at baseline, after the 6-week intervention, 1-month follow-up and 5-month follow-up. |
| Secondary outcome measures | Self-reported measures of psychological variables (perceived need-support; autonomous and controlled forms of motivation towards physical activity; attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, and intentions for out-of-school physical activity) measured by self-report questionnaires at baseline, after the 6-week intervention, 1-month follow-up and 5-month follow-up. |
| Overall study start date | 01/09/2020 |
| Overall study end date | 31/05/2024 |
Eligibility
| Participant type(s) | Healthy volunteer |
|---|---|
| Age group | Child |
| Lower age limit | 12 Years |
| Upper age limit | 13 Years |
| Sex | Both |
| Target number of participants | 4 clusters, 108 students in each cluster |
| Total final enrolment | 149 |
| Participant inclusion criteria | 1. Age 12-13 years (Grade 6-7 students) 2. No restrictions on participation in physical education classes |
| Participant exclusion criteria | Restrictions on participation in physical education classes |
| Recruitment start date | 01/05/2023 |
| Recruitment end date | 01/10/2023 |
Locations
Countries of recruitment
- Estonia
Study participating centre
Tartu
51008
Estonia
Sponsor information
University/education
Institute of Sport Sciences and Physiotherapy
Ujula 4
Tartu
51008
Estonia
| Phone | +372 737 5360 |
|---|---|
| kkdek@ut.ee | |
| Website | http://www.ut.ee/en |
"ROR" |
https://ror.org/03z77qz90 |
Funders
Funder type
University/education
No information available
Results and Publications
| Intention to publish date | 30/06/2025 |
|---|---|
| Individual participant data (IPD) Intention to share | Yes |
| IPD sharing plan summary | Stored in publicly available repository |
| Publication and dissemination plan | Planned publication in a high-impact peer-reviewed journal |
| IPD sharing plan | The datasets generated during and analysed during the current study will be stored in a publicly available repository (Open Science Framework (OSF) data repository). |
Study outputs
| Output type | Details | Date created | Date added | Peer reviewed? | Patient-facing? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Protocol article | 18/10/2022 | 14/12/2022 | Yes | No | |
| Participant information sheet | Consent form for school | 15/12/2022 | No | Yes | |
| Participant information sheet | Information to schools | 15/12/2022 | No | Yes | |
| Participant information sheet | Invitation to schools | 15/12/2022 | No | Yes | |
| Participant information sheet | Parent information and informed consent form | 15/12/2022 | No | Yes | |
| Participant information sheet | Student information and informed consent form | 15/12/2022 | No | Yes | |
| Other publications | Results of pilot study | 25/08/2023 | 29/08/2023 | Yes | No |
Additional files
- 42903 PIS Parent information and informed consent form.pdf
- Parent information and informed consent form
- 42903 PIS Consent form for school.pdf
- Consent form for school
- 42903 PIS Invitation to schools.pdf
- Invitation to schools
- 42903 PIS Student information and informed consent form.pdf
- Student information and informed consent form
- 42903 PIS Information to schools.pdf
- Information to schools
Editorial Notes
11/06/2024: The overall study end date was changed from 30/06/2024 to 31/05/2024.
10/10/2023: The total final enrolment was added.
29/08/2023: Publication reference added.
14/12/2022: Trial's existence confirmed by Research Ethics Committee of the University of Tartu
