The Physical Activity Tracker Testing in Youth (P.A.T.T.Y) Study: Content Analysis and Children’s Perceptions

Abstract

BackgroundActivity trackers are widely used by adults and several models are now marketed for children.ObjectiveThe aims of this study were to (1) perform a content analysis of behavioral change techniques (BCTs) used by three commercially available youth-oriented activity trackers and (2) obtain feedback describing children’s perception of these devices and the associated websites.MethodsA content analysis recorded the presence of 36 possible BCTs for the MovBand (MB), Sqord (SQ), and Zamzee (ZZ) activity trackers. In addition, 16 participants (mean age 8.6 years [SD 1.6]; 50% female [8/16]) received all three trackers and were oriented to the devices and websites. Participants were instructed to wear the trackers on 4 consecutive days and spend ≥10 min/day on each website. A cognitive interview and survey were administered when the participant returned the devices. Qualitative data analysis was used to analyze the content of the cognitive interviews. Chi-square analyses were used to determine differences in behavioral monitoring and social interaction features between websites.ResultsThe MB, SQ, and ZZ devices or websites included 8, 15, and 14 of the possible 36 BCTs, respectively. All of the websites had a behavioral monitoring feature (charts for tracking activity), but the percentage of participants indicating that they “liked” those features varied by website (MB: 8/16, 50%; SQ: 6/16, 38%; ZZ: 11/16, 69%). Two websites (SQ and ZZ) included an “avatar” that the user could create to represent themselves on the website. Participants reported that they “liked” creating and changing their avatar (SQ: 12/16, 75%, ZZ: 15/16, 94%), which was supported by the qualitative analyses of the cognitive interviews. Most participants (75%) indicated that they would want to wear the devices more if their friends were wearing a tracker. No significant differences were observed between SQ and ZZ devices in regards to liking or use of social support interaction features (P=.21 to .37).ConclusionsThe websites contained several BCTs consistent with previously identified strategies. Children “liked” the social aspects of the websites more than the activity tracking features. Developers of commercial activity trackers for youth may benefit from considering a theoretical perspective during the website design process.

Wearable Activity Tracker Use Among Australian Adolescents: Usability and Acceptability Study

“…Such features include social support and social comparison, which may motivate adolescents to be active, given that peer influence is associated with health behaviors such as physical activity [ 28 , 29 ]. However, little research has examined users’ awareness and use of the different features or functions of such devices or apps with youth [ 1 , 30 ]. Ascertaining how to change behavior through targeting specific aspects of the device and/or app, for example, would help to inform the development of future interventions.…”

Formative Assessment: Design of a Web-Connected Sedentary Behavior Intervention for Females

“…To our knowledge, this is the first study to use formative assessments to examine participant preferences for the Movband and dashboard in our planning and development of an SB intervention for girls and young women. Others studies have explored user preferences for Movband system in children [ 38 ] and college students [ 39 ] but not with the intent to develop an SB intervention. The study in children examined their perceptions of three commercially available activity-monitoring systems with the devices worn simultaneously and reported that the Movband system was the least “liked” among the participants [ 38 ].…”

“…Others studies have explored user preferences for Movband system in children [ 38 ] and college students [ 39 ] but not with the intent to develop an SB intervention. The study in children examined their perceptions of three commercially available activity-monitoring systems with the devices worn simultaneously and reported that the Movband system was the least “liked” among the participants [ 38 ]. The possibility that the comparisons between the commercially available systems may have prejudiced the children’s opinions of the Movband system cannot be ignored.…”

“…The popularity of emerging wearable technologies lies in their ability to influence health behaviors [ 20 ] through their intrinsic behavior change techniques [ 40 ]. A content analysis of the Movband activity-monitoring system demonstrated that it lacks key behavior change components, including a social support feature [ 38 ]. Social support is an important component for activity-related behavior changes [ 41 , 42 ], and the use of partners/team-based strategies has been associated with social support, motivation, and accountability [ 27 , 28 ].…”

“…Social support is an important component for activity-related behavior changes [ 41 , 42 ], and the use of partners/team-based strategies has been associated with social support, motivation, and accountability [ 27 , 28 ]. In addition, studies in youth and young adults have indicated that friends can motivate activity-related behavior changes and may even improve device wear compliance [ 37 , 38 ]. As such, we explored the participants’ receptiveness to having an older (for girls) or younger (for women) partner.…”