Recruiting

Physical Activity Intervention

Sponsor:

University of South Carolina

Code:

NCT03732144

Conditions

Physical Activity

Obesity Prevention

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 9 - 16

Healthy Volunteers: Accepted

Interventions

Connect Staff-based PA intervention

Connect Health Curriculum Control

Study Details

Brief summary:

The overall goal of the Connect Through Positive Leisure Activities for Youth (PLAY) Project is to improve staff capacity for implementing effective physical activity (PA) programming within middle school after school programs serving high-risk youth. All components of the 'Connect' intervention (health promotion initiative, comprehensive training, and tailored physical activity curriculum) aim to support staff cohesion, motivation and efficacy in facilitating a PA context that supports youth social goals and meaningful connections. To this end, the investigators will be implementing a 5-year randomized controlled trial with 30 ASPs. Compared to control programs, after school programs receiving the 'Connect' program are expected to show greater improvements from baseline to post- and 6 mo follow-up in social mechanisms, youth PA, and staff PA. The Connect through PLAY project will provide important insights into what supports are needed (and efficacious) for after school program staff to create a positive social climate to promote increases in youth motivation and participation in physical activity.

Conditions

Physical Activity

Obesity Prevention

Study ID

NCT03732144

Start date

Jan 3, 2019

Status verified date

May, 2023

Completion date

May 31, 2024

Anticipated

Primary completion date

May 31, 2023

Anticipated

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 9 - 16

Healthy Volunteers: Accepted

Inclusion Criteria for Adolescents:

  • Must be currently enrolled in the after school program
  • Have parental consent to participate
  • Agree to study participation (assent)
  • Be available for baseline and post-intervention measurement.

Inclusion for Adults (Program Staff):

  • Must be part of the after school staff
  • No medical condition or disorder that would limit participation
  • Available and able to participate in the data collection and the intervention phase (trainings, health initiative, etc) for the study period.

Exclusion Criteria for Adolescents and Adults (Program Staff)

  • Have a medical condition that would interfere with the prescribed physical activity intervention plan
  • Have a developmental delay or are in treatment for a psychiatric disorder such that the intervention materials will not be appropriate.

Study Design

Enrollment

1350 participants

Anticipated

Allocation

Randomized

Intervention Model

Parallel Assignment

Primary purpose

Prevention

Interventions and Outcome Measures

Arms

experimental: Connect Staff-based PA intervention

Sites receiving the Connect physical activity intervention will involve three related components - a staff health promotion initiative that helps staff pursue personally-tailored health goals and involves weekly 'check-ins', a tailored social PA curriculum to implement within the program's enrichment hour at least 3 times per week, and a comprehensive staff training program that provides strategies and tools for improving social connections within the program and guided support for implementing the social PA curriculum.

other: Connect Health Curriculum Control

Sites receiving the general health curriculum control will also involve three related components- a comprehensive health program curriculum that includes activities that are interactive and fun and where students will learn about a variety of health behaviors (nutrition, stress reduction, etc.) and life skills through group activities, a staff training program that provides strategies and tools for implementing program curriculum, and on-going support from the Connect staff.

Interventions

Connect Staff-based PA intervention

After school program sites receiving the Connect intervention will receive a 16 week program that includes three related components - a staff health promotion initiative that helps staff pursue personally-tailored health goals and involves weekly 'check-ins', a tailored social PA curriculum to implement within the program's enrichment hour at least 3 times per week, and a comprehensive staff training program that provides strategies and tools for improving social connections within the program and guided support for implementing the social PA curriculum. Compared to control ASPs, ASPs receiving the 'Connect' program are expected to show greater improvements from baseline to post- and 6 mo follow-up in PA-related social mechanisms, youth PA, and staff PA.

Connect Health Curriculum Control

After school program sites receiving the general ASP health curriculum control will address the prevention of several negative health behaviors (e.g., substance use, stress, etc) and also involve three related components- a comprehensive health program curriculum that includes activities that are interactive and fun and where students will learn about a variety of health behaviors (nutrition, stress reduction, etc.) and life skills through group activities, a staff training program that provides strategies and tools for implementing program curriculum, and on-going support from the Connect staff. This arm will serve as the comparison group to the Connect Staff-based PA intervention

Primary outcome measure

  • Greater increases (change) in physical activity (i.e., light, moderate, vigorous PA; using 7-day omni-directional accelerometers) of youth and staff receiving the Connect Staff-based PA intervention compared to General Health Curriculum control. [ Time Frame: baseline to 6mo follow-up ]

Central Contacts and Locations

Central contacts

Nicole Zarrett, PhD

617-717-9873zarrettn@mailbox.sc.edu

Locations

University of South Carolina

Recruiting

Columbia, South Carolina, United States, 29208

Contacts

Nicole Zarrett, Ph.D.

617-717-9873zarrettn@mailbox.sc.edu

Dawn Wilson-King, Ph.D.

803-236-7799wilsondk@mailbox.sc.edu

More Information

Sponsor

University of South Carolina

Last update posted

May 10, 2023

Last verified

May, 2023

Keywords

  • Physical Activity
  • Community-based Intervention
  • Social Motivational Theories
  • Behavioral Change
  • Agents of Change
  • Social Mechanisms

Trial information was received from ClinicalTrials.gov and was last updated on 2026-09-10. This information was provided to ClinicalTrials.gov by University of South Carolina on 2023-05-10.