Applying Mobile Persuasive Technologies to Increase Physical Activity in Women

This Omron Active Style Pro HJA-350IT comes with a Universal Serial Bus (USB) Connection and personal computer (PC) Software. The Active Style Pro HJA-350IT can display daily steps. The advantage of using the Omron Active Style Pro HJA-350IT is that the Omron Active Style Pro HJA-350IT will automatically reset the step count every evening at midnight while still allowing participants to view the past 7 days of step counts. Another advantage of using this Omron Active Style Pro HJA-350IT is that a researcher can select 1 of 4 Omron Active Style Pro HJA-350IT screen displays: (1) Steps display only, (2) metabolic equivalents (MET) display only, (3) 24-hour clock display (does not show any physical activity information), and (4) Steps, MET, and weekly average activities during the last four weeks. Data from the most recent 150 days performance will also be automatically stored so they can be directly downloaded to a computer.

This Omron Active Style Pro HJA-350IT comes with a Universal Serial Bus (USB) Connection and personal computer (PC) Software. The Active Style Pro HJA-350IT can display daily steps. The advantage of using the Omron Active Style Pro HJA-350IT is that the Omron Active Style Pro HJA-350IT will automatically reset the step count every evening at midnight while still allowing participants to view the past 7 days of step counts. Another advantage of using this Omron Active Style Pro HJA-350IT is that a researcher can select 1 of 4 Omron Active Style Pro HJA-350IT screen displays: (1) Steps display only, (2) metabolic equivalents (MET) display only, (3) 24-hour clock display (does not show any physical activity information), and (4) Steps, MET, and weekly average activities during the last four weeks. Data from the most recent 150 days performance will also be automatically stored so they can be directly downloaded to a computer.

An interviewer-administered 7-day physical activity recall (PAR) is used to assess physical activities performed during the week preceding each visit. The PAR is a widely used and well-validated self-report recall instrument that assesses the frequency, duration, and intensity of physical activity. It yields average kcal/kg/day.

The Self-Efficacy for Physical Activity will be used to measure how confident the participant is to engage in physical activity in a specific situation. A sample item is, "I am confident I can participate in regular physical activity when I am tired." The measure consists of five items on a scale of 1 to 5, "1" being "not at all confident" and "5" being "very confident." The possible range of scores is from 5 to 25 points. Higher scores indicate higher self-efficacy for physical activity. Reported internal consistency ranges from 0.78 to 0.82. This measure has been widely used in adult women and men. Based on our pilot study, we added one additional question to this survey.

The Social Support and Exercise Survey will be used to measure both friend and family social support related to physical activity during the past three months. The measure comprises two subscales (friend and family support subscales). Each subscale has 12 items with 5-point Likert scales (ranging from 1, "none" to 5, "very often"). The ratings of all 12 items are summed for a subtotal score (possible ranges from 12 to 60). Internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha) of the measure was 0.83 in previous studies. Test-retest reliabilities of the measure have ranged from 0.79 to 0.90 for both scales. Reported internal consistencies ranged between 0.80 to 0.93 for both scales. Higher scores indicate greater support.

The Social Support and Exercise Survey will be used to measure both friend and family social support related to physical activity during the past three months. The measure comprises two subscales (friend and family support subscales). Each subscale has 12 items with 5-point Likert scales (ranging from 1, "none" to 5, "very often"). The ratings of all 12 items are summed for a subtotal score (possible ranges from 12 to 60). Internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha) of the measure was 0.83 in previous studies. Test-retest reliabilities of the measure have ranged from 0.79 to 0.90 for both scales. Reported internal consistencies ranged between 0.80 to 0.93 for both scales.