Recruiting

Observational Study

Sponsor:

University of Massachusetts, Worcester

Code:

NCT07780825

Conditions

Built Environment

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 18+

Healthy Volunteers: Accepted

Interventions

Neighborhood Connect

Study Details

Brief summary:

The study is evaluating the effectiveness of an implementation strategy called Neighborhood Connect, which is designed to support residents' engagement in activities that improve the attractiveness, safety and livability of Worcester, MA neighborhoods. The program focuses on the built environment (i.e., the human-made, physical surroundings of Worcester neighborhoods including indoor public places and outdoor spaces like parks, streets and sidewalks) and aims to build capacity of community members to strengthen their neighborhoods. Participants will include residents and others who care about local built environment conditions. Neighborhood Connect is delivered by a built environment specialist from the local health department in collaboration with a statewide coalition.

Conditions

Built Environment

Study ID

NCT07780825

Start date

Feb 1, 2026

Status verified date

Apr, 2026

Completion date

Sep, 2029

Anticipated

Primary completion date

Sep, 2028

Anticipated

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 18+

Healthy Volunteers: Accepted

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Live, work or have other connection to specific areas of Worcester, MA;
  • Speak English or Spanish

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Don't speak English or Spanish;
  • Have a cognitive deficit that precludes participation

Study Design

Enrollment

240 participants

Anticipated

Allocation

Randomized

Intervention Model

Sequential

Primary purpose

Other

Interventions and Outcome Measures

Arms

experimental: Neighborhood Connect implementation strategy

All participants receive the Neighborhood Connect implementation strategy. It is deployed to all participants in a given wave (neighborhood/area) at once. Order of implementaiton of the intervention is determined by neighborhood/area-level randomization.

other: Pre-implementation

Within this stepped wedge design, each individual serves as their own comparator. Data from the pre-implementation phase will be collected for this purpose.

Interventions

Neighborhood Connect

Neighborhood Connect is an implementation strategy designed to prepare participants to make built environment changes that promote healthy communities, including social connectedness, physical activity, traffic safety, etc. The program is generic and allows participants to identify their own priorities for built environment change. The curriculum includes six Zoom-based educational sessions delivered by a built environment specialist with a member of a walking coalition, participation in a neighborhood audit, creation of a plan for change and ability to receive technical assistance after the formal program is completed. The built environment specialist receives training and technical assistance for leading the resident-focused implementation strategy.

Primary outcome measure

  • Built environment actions [ Time Frame: Baseline, 3 months, 12 months ]

Central Contacts and Locations

Central contacts

Stephenie C Lemon, PhD, MS

15088564098Stephenie.Lemon@Umassmed.edu

Locations

University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School

Recruiting

Worcester, Massachusetts, United States, 01655

Contacts

Stephenie C Lemon, PhD, MS

5088261325Stephenie.Lemon@Umassmed.edu

More Information

Sponsor

University of Massachusetts, Worcester

Last update posted

Aug 24, 2026

Last verified

Apr, 2026

Keywords

  • built environment
  • implementation science

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 Massachusetts, Worcester on 2026-08-24.