Adding team-based financial incentives to the Carrot Rewards physical activity app increases daily step count on a population scale: a 24-week matched case control study.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Mobile health applications (mHealth apps) targeting physical inactivity have increased in popularity yet are usually limited by low engagement. This study examined the impact of adding team-based incentives (Step Together Challenges, STCs) to an existing mHealth app (Carrot Rewards) that rewarded individual physical activity achievements.

Methods

A 24-week quasi-experimental study (retrospective matched pairs design) was conducted in three Canadian provinces (pre-intervention: weeks 1-12; intervention: weeks 13-24). Participants who used Carrot Rewards and STCs (experimental group) were matched with those who used Carrot Rewards only (controls) on age, gender, province and baseline mean daily step count (±500 steps/d). Carrot Rewards users earned individual-level

SUBMITTER: Pearson E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7677847 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature