The STRIDE Pilot Trial is a randomized controlled pilot trial that will utilize social identity informed virtual running groups to support underactive undergraduate students' well-being and exercise behaviour. The main outcomes of this study are to determine whether the intervention is feasible and acceptable to conduct as a full-scale efficacy trial. Secondary outcomes of interest include changes in participants' exercise identity, exercise behaviour, perceived social support, and well-being. Participants' perceived social identification with their running group will also be assessed at the end of the study.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
OTHER
Masking
NONE
Enrollment
73
The intervention will include an eight-week virtual running group program hosted on online platforms such as Zoom and the fitness application Strava. Participants will be placed in running groups of 6 people, and each running group will have the collective goal to run/walk the distance across the province of B.C., (940 km) and will meet weekly over Zoom to socialize and discuss running topics and their progress towards the group goal. Participants will receive a t-shirt with the STRIDE logo and a phone armband for carrying their smart phone during runs and walks.
The attention control condition will be instructed to record their exercise using the Strava application, and will be encouraged to participate in 150 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous exercise each week of the intervention.
University of British Columbia
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Feasibility and Acceptability: Participant interest in the program
Total number of individuals expressing interest in the program.
Time frame: Recorded from recruitment to follow-up (Week 8)
Feasibility and Acceptability: Participant enrolment
Participant enrolment will be assessed with the total number of participants enrolled in the study.
Time frame: Follow up (Week 8)
Feasibility and Acceptability: Affective attitudes towards exercise
Participants' affective attitudes towards exercise will be assessed using four bipolar semantic differential adjectives (Conner et al., 2011) rated on a seven-point scale ranging from 1 to 7 (pleasant-unpleasant; enjoyable-unenjoyable; exciting-boring; satisfying-unsatisfying). The four items will be mean-scored (potential range 1-7), with higher scores reflecting higher positive affective attitudes towards exercise, and a more positive outcome.
Time frame: Change from Baseline (Week 0) to follow-up (Week 8)
Feasibility and Acceptability: Program satisfaction
One item, adapted from a pilot study conducted by Vincze et al. (2018), will be used to assess general satisfaction with the program. Participants (virtual running program only) will rate their satisfaction with the STRIDE program on a 5-point Likert-type scale anchored by 1 (Not at all satisfied) to 5 (Extremely satisfied). Higher scores will reflect greater program satisfaction and a more positive outcome.
Time frame: Follow-up (Week 8)
Feasibility and Acceptability: Study Retention
The percentage of participants who adhere to the study.
Time frame: Recorded from Baseline (Week 0) to follow up (Week 8)
Feasibility and Acceptability: Questionnaire completion rates
Percentage of questionnaires completed.
Time frame: Recorded from Baseline (Week 0) to follow up (Week 8)
Feasibility and Acceptability: Program attendance
Percentage of weekly Zoom meetings attended.
Time frame: Recorded from Baseline (Week 0) to follow up (Week 8)
Feasibility and Acceptability: Semi structured interviews
10 semi-structured interviews will be conducted with members of the intervention group to assess participants' experiences and satisfaction with the program, as well as their perceptions of social support, group identification, and exercise identity throughout the program.
Time frame: Follow up (Week 8)
Well-Being (Psychological Flourishing)
Domain general well-being will be assessed using the 8-item Flourishing Scale from Diener et el., (2010). Participants will respond to the 8 flourishing items on a 7-point Likert-type scale anchored by 1 (Strongly disagree) to 7 (Strongly agree). The 8 items will be mean-scored (potential range 1-7), with higher scores indicating higher psychological flourishing and a more positive outcome.
Time frame: Change from Baseline (Week 0) to follow-up (Week 8)
Perceived Social Support Received in the Context of Exercise
Social support in the context of exercise will be assessed using a four-item social support scale (Gleibs et al., 2011; Haslam et al., 2005) adapted for the context of exercise participation. Participants will respond to the 4 social support items on a 5-point Likert-type scale anchored by 1 (Strongly Disagree) to 5 (Strongly Agree). The 4 items will be mean-scored (potential range 1-5), with higher scores reflecting greater perceived social support from others in the context of exercise and a more positive outcome.
Time frame: Change from Baseline (Week 0) to follow-up (Week 8)
Well-Being (Subjective Vitality)
Participants will complete the six-item (Bostic et al., 2000) Subjective Vitality Scale (SVS; Ryan \& Frederick, 1997) adapted for the context of exercise behaviour. Participants will respond to the 6 exercise-related subjective vitality items on a 7-point Likert-type scale anchored by 1 (Not at All True) to 7 (Very True). The 6 items will be mean-scored (potential range 1-7), with higher scores reflecting greater subjective experiences of vitality in the context of exercise and a more positive outcome.
Time frame: Change from Baseline (Week 0) to follow-up (Week 8)
Exercise Identity
Participants will complete the nine-item Exercise Identity Scale (Anderson \& Cychosz, 1994). Participants will respond to the 9 exercise identity items on a 7-point Likert-type scale anchored by 1 (Strongly Disagree) to 7 (Strongly Agree). Consistent with Wilson and Muon (2008), two separate scores will be calculated to reflect the role-identity dimension and the exercise beliefs dimension of the scale. Items 1, 2, and 6 will be mean-scored (potential range 1-7), with higher score reflecting a greater role identity in relation to exercise behaviour, and items 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, and 9 will be mean-scored (potential range 1-7), with higher scores reflecting greater exercise-related beliefs and a more positive outcome.
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Time frame: Change from Baseline (Week 0) to follow-up (Week 8)
Social Identification with the Running Group
Using a four-item social identification scale (Doosje et al., 1995), participants in the intervention condition will respond to four items inquiring the degree to which they positively identify with their running group. Participants will respond to the 4 social identification items using a 7-point Likert-type scale anchored by 1 (Strongly Disagree) to 7 (Strongly Agree). The 4 items will be mean-scored (potential range 1-7), with higher scores reflecting stronger positive identification with the running group and a more positive outcome.
Time frame: Follow-up (Week 8)
Exercise Behaviour
In reference to the past month, participants will report the number of times per week (on average) they engaged in mild, moderate, and vigorous exercise using the Godin Leisure Time Exercise Questionnaire (Godin \& Shephard, 1985), and the average duration of mild, moderate, and vigorous exercise sessions (Courneya et al., 2004). Consistent with Courneya et al. (2004), the researchers will create an indicator of average weekly moderate-to-vigorous exercise minutes (in past month) for each participant using the following equation: (number of moderate exercise bouts x average minutes per bout) + (number of vigorous exercise bouts x average minutes per bout). The scores will have a minimum value of 0 minutes, with more minutes indicating greater participation in moderate-to-vigorous exercise and a more positive outcome.
Time frame: Change from Baseline (Week 0) to follow-up (Week 8)
Weekly exercise behaviour (activity type)
Participants will log their daily exercise (type of activity) at the end of each week
Time frame: Week 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8
Weekly exercise behaviour (activity duration)
Participants will log their daily exercise (duration of activity) at the end of each week
Time frame: Week 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8
Demographics
Items addressing sex/gender, age, ethnicity, height, weight, residence (City, Province), disability, marital status, swelling type, living situation (alone, others), undergraduate major
Time frame: Baseline (Week 0)