Behavioral Science in Video Games for Children's Diet and Physical Activity Change: Key Research Needs

Objective: Interest in health videogames to stimulate health behavior change is increasing, yet little research exists on their use. This study tested the acceptability of an online health videogame called ''Fitter CrittersÔ'' (Megazoid Games, Collegeville, PA) for improving healthy diet and activity in elementary school students. Subjects and Methods: In October and November 2011, fifth grade students (n = 97) from a school in central Massachusetts played the game for 1 week during their health class. Measures of nutrition and activity knowledge, attitudes, and self-efficacy were completed prior to playing the game and again on the final day along with a videogame acceptability questionnaire. Results: The videogame was highly acceptable to participants as measured by the acceptability questionnaire mean rating of 4.52 (SD = 0.60), where 1 = strongly disagree and 5 = strongly agree; 73% of students played the game at least once outside of class. Significant increases in positive attitudes toward healthy eating (P < 0.001) and healthy eating self-efficacy (P = 0.02) and marginally significant increases in nutrition knowledge (P = 0.08) were observed. Conclusions: The ''Fitter Critters'' health videogame engages students in learning about healthy eating and activity. Further research should assess whether the positive changes observed in knowledge, attitudes, and selfefficacy translate into behavior change.

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“…15 Game features are described below, and Table 1 indicates which theorized aspects critical to behavior change are covered by each game feature:…”

Section: ''Fitter Critters''mentioning

confidence: 99%

Acceptability of an Online Health Videogame to Improve Diet and Physical Activity in Elementary School Students: “Fitter Critters”

Schneider

Ferrara²,

Lance³

et al. 2012

Games for Health Journal

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“…A comprehensive theoretical model of mediating variables and behavior change procedures was generated to specify how we believe these videogames functioned to influence behavior [67]. Extensive formative research was conducted to generate the story line and artwork to be maximally interesting to the targeted 10- to 12-year-old children [68] and to generate intervention activities [69].…”

Section: Innovative Interventionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influences on Children's Dietary Behavior, and Innovative Attempts to Change It

2013

Self Cite

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Fruit and vegetable (FV) intake may protect against several chronic diseases, and the preferences and habits in relation to FV intake appear to form in early childhood. Child FV intake reflects many influences from multiple levels (e.g. internal to the child, family, school, and neighborhood). We have documented influences at each of these levels, but more definitive research in longitudinal samples remains to be conducted. Even though validated comprehensive models of influences on child FV intake in longitudinal studies are not available to guide intervention design for children of different ages, there has been an urgency to initiate chronic disease prevention interventions to mitigate the substantial health consequences. Effective interventions use known behavior change procedures to change the influences on FV intake enough to change the behavior, but few such interventions have demonstrated effectiveness at meaningful levels. Innovative methods need to be explored. Videogames for Health offer a medium that is attractive to children and shows promising results, especially for dietary behavior change. Exciting additional research is needed to clarify possible bidirectional influences between the environmental and individual influences on child intake with possible age-related differences in influence and in the optimal design of video games for dietary change.

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“…In addition, new educational strategies aimed at children need to be developed to induce them to make healthier choices rather than buying 'junk' food, and to make them more aware of the potential hazards associated with these foods. Such strategies should involve the dissemination of information via child-friendly media (e.g., television advertisements, interesting games, and education programs) to help them distinguish good food from cheap and poorly nutritious food (Baranowski, Thompson, Buday, Lu, & Baranowski, 2010;Harris, Bargh, & Brownell, 2009;Zeinstra, Koelen, Kok, Van Der Laan, & De Graaf, 2010).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Discordance in risk perception between children, parents, and teachers in terms of consumption of cheap and poorly nutritious food sold around schools

Kim

Park

et al. 2015

Food Quality and Preference

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Behavioral Science in Video Games for Children's Diet and Physical Activity Change: Key Research Needs

Cited by 72 publications

References 93 publications

Acceptability of an Online Health Videogame to Improve Diet and Physical Activity in Elementary School Students: “Fitter Critters”

Acceptability of an Online Health Videogame to Improve Diet and Physical Activity in Elementary School Students: “Fitter Critters”

Influences on Children's Dietary Behavior, and Innovative Attempts to Change It

Discordance in risk perception between children, parents, and teachers in terms of consumption of cheap and poorly nutritious food sold around schools

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