A new research project titled "The Impact of Gameful Design on Sedentary Adults' Motivation for Physical Activity and Physical Activity Levels" seeks sedentary adults to participate.
"The concept of gamification has shown potential for increasing user engagement, user activity, user productivity and social interactions; however, many gamefully designed activity tools have not been properly evaluated," the study screening website states. The researchers will explore novel and effective ways for people to become more motivated to exercise.
The project is led by Ernesto Medina, Dr.P.H., executive director of the Loma Linda University School of Public Health Center for Nutrition, Healthy Lifestyle and Disease Prevention; and by Dominique Wakefield, M.A., CPT, CWP, a doctoral candidate at the University of Bath and an assistant professor at La Sierra University. Co-investigators include researchers from Northeastern University (Boston) and the University of Bath.
"I'm excited about this research because when I used to work in the clinical setting...I would get asked all the time what digital tools were effective and based on sound theory and research, and sadly, there wasn’t a lot of evidence showing that these tools really worked," Dr. Medina said. "We hope our research will give this kind of information that both health care professionals and the public can use to make informed decisions."
The study is IRB-approved by all three institutions, and the investigators are looking for participants that meet certain criteria as listed on the study website.
For more information about the study, visit phdresearch2014.webs.com/info-screening.