Reducing Contact Centre Call Agents' Sitting Time

NCT03733288 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: 18-SPS-Graves1
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 60
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The study investigates whether a workplace intervention can encourage highly sedentary contact centre call agents to sit less and move more at work. The effect of the intervention will be assessed at 12 weeks and 9 months. The hypothesis is that the intervention will reduce workplace sitting and increase workplace standing and light walking.

Conditions

Sedentary Lifestyle; Physical Activity

Keywords

Intervention; Workplace; Sedentary behaviour; Physical activity; Adults; Economic; Evaluation

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Change in workplace sitting time at 12 weeks and 9 months from baseline

  An activpal monitor will objectively assess habitual sitting time for 24 hours over 7 consecutive days.

  Baseline (week 0), 12 weeks, 9 months

Secondary Outcomes (31)

• Change in workplace standing time at 12 weeks and 9 months from baseline

  Baseline (week 0), 12 weeks, 9 months

• Change in workplace walking time at 12 weeks and 9 months from baseline

  Baseline (week 0), 12 weeks, 9 months

• Change in whole day sitting time at 12 weeks and 9 months from baseline

  Baseline (week 0), 12 weeks, 9 months

• Change in whole day standing time at 12 weeks and 9 months from baseline

  Baseline (week 0), 12 weeks, 9 months

• Change in whole day walking time at 12 weeks and 9 months from baseline

  Baseline (week 0), 12 weeks, 9 months

Study Arms (2)

SLAMM

EXPERIMENTAL

Multi-component intervention (Education and training sessions, Support emails, Team leader training)

Behavioral: Education and training sessions; Behavioral: Support emails; Behavioral: Team leader training

SLAMM+

EXPERIMENTAL

Multi-component intervention (Education and training sessions, Support emails, Team leader training, Height-adjustable workstation)

Behavioral: Education and training sessions; Behavioral: Support emails; Behavioral: Team leader training; Device: Height-adjustable workstation

Interventions

Education and training sessions BEHAVIORAL

Agents will be invited to attend sessions in intervention week 1, 3, 9, and month 6. Sessions will introduce (week 1) and reinforce (week 3, 9, month 6) the intervention aims, benefits of and ways to move more and sit less, with emphasis on active breaks. Feedback from baseline assessment will be provided and discussed in week 3 (health data) and 9 (activity data) and month 6 (health and activity data from the 12-week assessment). Each session will include discussion of daily standing/walking goals set by the research team, with timers and a goal log provided to participants in week 1 to enable self-monitoring. The Stand Up champions, and their role to encourage daily movement and sitting reduction through modelling and verbal support, will be communicated and reinforced in each session.

SLAMM; SLAMM+

Support emails BEHAVIORAL

Agents will receive support emails weekly (weeks 1-12) then monthly (months 4-9) across the intervention. Each email includes an infographic that encourages moving more and sitting less at work.

SLAMM; SLAMM+

Team leader training BEHAVIORAL

Team leaders in the participating organisation will be invited to attend a training session before the intervention starts. The training aims to enhance team leader's capabilities to demonstrate positive movement and sitting behaviours at work and promote call agents to sit less and move more at work. Team leaders will be asked to include the intervention as an agenda item in their weekly team meetings with their call agents and their 1:1 sessions with call agents. Team leaders will be encouraged to incorporate walking into their 1:1 meetings with call agents.

SLAMM; SLAMM+

Height-adjustable workstation DEVICE

After baseline, agents in the SLAMM+ arm will have a height-adjustable workstation installed on their existing workplace desk. This will enable work in a seated or standing position, with flexibility to alternate between postures. Desk installation will occur with support from the onsite organisation health and safety team. The research team will brief participants on safe and effective workstation use. A laminated sheet will be fixed to each workstation to remind participants of safe and effective use.

SLAMM+

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Full time member of staff (≥0.6 full time or part time equivalent worker in a permanent or temporary/agency position)
• Call agent job role
• Based onsite throughout the trial period
• Access to a work telephone and desktop computer with internet
• Ambulatory

You may not qualify if:

• Health problems that would impact ability to stand for 10 minutes at a time
• Planned absence \>3 weeks during first 3 months of the trial
• Planned relocation to another workplace/site during the first 3 months of the intervention
• Pregnant

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Liverpool John Moores University: lead
• University of Liverpool: collaborator
• University of Leicester: collaborator
• The University of Queensland: collaborator

Study Sites (1)

Liverpool John Moores University

Liverpool, United Kingdom

Location

Related Publications (1)

• Morris AS, Murphy RC, Hopkins ND, Low DA, Healy GN, Edwardson CL, Collins B, Timpson H, Shepherd SO, Cochrane M, Gavin D, Graves LEF. Sit Less and Move More-A Multicomponent Intervention With and Without Height-Adjustable Workstations in Contact Center Call Agents: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial. J Occup Environ Med. 2021 Jan 1;63(1):44-56. doi: 10.1097/JOM.0000000000002066.

  PMID: 33122540 DERIVED

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Sedentary Behavior; Motor Activity

Interventions

Educational Status

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Behavior

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Socioeconomic Factors; Population Characteristics

Study Officials

• Lee EF Graves, PhD

  Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, Merseyside, United Kingdom, L3 2AT

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: BASIC SCIENCE
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Senior Lecturer

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: November 2, 2018
• First Posted: November 7, 2018
• Study Start: July 11, 2018
• Primary Completion: June 28, 2019
• Study Completion: August 9, 2019
• Last Updated: August 14, 2019

Record last verified: 2019-08

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

GB (1)