Abstract
This feasibility study explored the contextual factors influencing office workers’ adherence to an e-health intervention targeting total and prolonged sedentary time over 12 weeks. A three-arm quasi-randomized intervention included prompts at 30 or 60 min intervals delivered via a smartphone application, and a no-prompt comparison arm. Fifty-six office workers completed baseline (64% female) and 44 completed the 12 week follow-up (80% retention). Ecological momentary assessments (EMA) captured contextual data, with 82.8 ± 24.9 EMA prompt questionnaires completed weekly. Two focus groups with n = 8 Prompt 30 and 60 participants were conducted one-month post-intervention to address intervention acceptability and feasibility. Contextual findings indicate that when working on a sedentary task (i.e., reading or screen-based work) and located at an individual workstation, hourly prompts may be more acceptable and feasible for promoting a reduction in total and prolonged sedentary time compared to 30 min prompts. Interpersonal support also appears important for promoting subtle shifts in sedentary working practices. This novel study gives a real-time insight into the factors influencing adherence to e-health prompts. Findings identified unique, pragmatic considerations for delivering a workplace e-health intervention, indicating that further research is warranted to optimize the method of intervention delivery prior to evaluation of a large-scale intervention.
Highlights
IntroductionOccupational sedentary time is the largest contributor to total weekday sedentary time among office workers [1], with employed adults in the UK typically spending between
(no-prompt comparison n = 15, 71%; Prompt 30 n = 15, 75%; Prompt 60 n = 15, 100%) of total participants retained throughout the trial
Our findings indicate that the e-health smartphone application may work as a tool to increase understanding and awareness of sedentary behaviors among deskbased employees
Summary
Occupational sedentary time is the largest contributor to total weekday sedentary time among office workers [1], with employed adults in the UK typically spending between. Of particular concern is that desk-based workers in the UK spend over half of their sedentary time in prolonged bouts of either. ≥30 or ≥55 min [3] This protracted volume of total and prolonged sedentary behavior (SB) is associated with adverse health, well-being and work outcomes, including increased cardiometabolic risk factors [4,5], musculoskeletal discomfort [6,7], impaired cerebral blood flow [8] and lower productivity [9]. Given the high exposure of office and desk-based workers to these potential health risks, there is an urgent need to target sedentary working
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More From: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
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