Kramer Lean L, Mulder Bob C, van Velsen Lex, de Vet Emely
Consumption and Healthy Lifestyles, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, Netherlands.
Strategic Communication, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, Netherlands.
JMIR Res Protoc. 2021 Jan 6;10(1):e22186. doi: 10.2196/22186.
An unhealthy eating pattern and loneliness negatively influence quality of life in older age. Embodied conversational agents (ECAs) are a promising way to address these health behaviors in an engaging manner.
We aim to (1) identify whether ECAs can persuade community-dwelling older adults to change their dietary behavior and whether ECA use can decrease loneliness, (2) test these pathways to effects, and (3) understand the use of an ECA.
The web-based eHealth app PACO is a fully automated 8-week intervention in which 2 ECAs engage older adults in dialogue to motivate them to change their dietary behavior and decrease their loneliness. PACO was developed via a human-centered and stakeholder-inclusive design approach and incorporates Self-determination Theory and various behavior change techniques. For this study, an unblinded randomized controlled trial will be performed. There will be 2 cohorts, with 30 participants per cohort. Participants in the first cohort will immediately receive the PACO app for 8 weeks, while participants in the second cohort receive the PACO app after a waiting-list condition of 4 weeks. Participants will be recruited via social media, an online panel, flyers, and advertorials. To be eligible, participants must be at least 65 years of age, must not be in paid employment, and must live alone independently at home. Primary outcomes will be self-assessed via online questionnaires at intake, control, after 4 weeks, and after 8 weeks, and will include eating behavior and loneliness. In addition, the primary outcome-use-will be measured via data logs. Secondary outcomes will be measured at the same junctures, via either validated, self-assessed, online questionnaires or an optional interview.
As of July 2020, we have begun recruiting participants.
By unraveling the mechanisms behind the use of a web-based intervention with ECAs, we hope to gain a fine-grained understanding of both the effectiveness and the use of ECAs in the health context.
ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04510883; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04510883.
INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): PRR1-10.2196/22186.
不健康的饮食模式和孤独感会对老年人的生活质量产生负面影响。具身对话代理（ECA）是一种很有前景的方式，能够以引人入胜的方式解决这些健康行为问题。
我们旨在（1）确定ECA是否能说服社区居住的老年人改变他们的饮食行为，以及使用ECA是否能减少孤独感，（2）测试这些影响途径，（3）了解ECA的使用情况。
基于网络的电子健康应用程序PACO是一项为期8周的全自动干预措施，其中两个ECA与老年人进行对话，以激励他们改变饮食行为并减少孤独感。PACO是通过以人为本和利益相关者参与的设计方法开发的，并纳入了自我决定理论和各种行为改变技巧。对于本研究，将进行一项非盲随机对照试验。将有两个队列，每个队列30名参与者。第一个队列的参与者将立即接受PACO应用程序8周，而第二个队列的参与者在4周的等待期后接受PACO应用程序。参与者将通过社交媒体、在线小组、传单和广告招募。符合条件的参与者必须至少65岁，不得从事有偿工作，并且必须独立居住在家中。主要结果将在入组时、对照期、4周后和8周后通过在线问卷进行自我评估，包括饮食行为和孤独感。此外，主要结果的使用情况将通过数据记录进行测量。次要结果将在相同时间点通过经过验证的、自我评估的在线问卷或可选访谈进行测量。
截至2020年7月，我们已开始招募参与者。
通过揭示基于网络的ECA干预背后的机制，我们希望能对ECA在健康背景下的有效性和使用情况有更深入的了解。
ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04510883；https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04510883。
国际注册报告识别码（IRRID）：PRR1-10.2196/22186。
