Usage and Health Effects of Embodied Conversational Agents Among Older Adults

NCT04510883 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: 40-44300-98-110
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 52
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Rationale: Embodied Conversational Agents (ECAs), could be a highly effective medium to address health behaviour change among older adults. As compliance to health advice is important for positive health outcomes, successful design of persuasive ECAs can have huge health benefits. However, insights in the mechanisms underlying usage and health behaviour change via ECAs are lacking. Objective: The objective is to unravel the mechanisms behind the use of an ECA intervention, and understand the mechanism behind the observed behaviour change Study design: A randomized staggered-entry waitlist-controlled trial will be carried out. Study population: The study population consist of Dutch-speaking older adults, who live independently, are without partner, are retired, 65+ and possess basic computer skills. Intervention: The application PACO has been created for (and with) older adults with the goal to motivate them to improve their eating behaviour and decrease their feelings of loneliness. Main study parameters/endpoints: The main study parameters are use, loneliness, and eating behaviour. Nature and extent of the burden and risks associated with participation, benefit and group relatedness: Subjects are not exposed to any risks, nor have they any costs. They do have to fill in questionnaires and use the application. The duration and data collection moments are needed to gain a fine-grained understanding of the use, relationship development and health change process. For subjects, the main benefit is to gain insight in their health behaviour via the PACO-application. Although this might be experienced as confronting by some. The technology was developed based on sound theories, with input from the target group, so the investigators expect positive experiences and an improvement in participants loneliness and eating behaviour. However, this can only be proven after the study.

Conditions

Eating Behavior; Loneliness; Technology Use

Keywords

eHealth; Embodied Conversational Agent; Technology use

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (3)

• Logdata on use application

  Amount of time spend on the application during the 8 weeks intervention period

  8 weeks

• Change in De Jong Gierveld Loneliness Scale

  Score from 1-5, higher score means a better outcome.

  Four weeks before intervention to eight weeks

• Change in eating behaviour based on 24 hours recall

  Four weeks before intervention to eight weeks

Secondary Outcomes (9)

• Enjoyment via affect scale

  Eight weeks after intervention

• Classic aesthetics Scale

  Eight weeks after intervention

• Concern for privacy scale

  Four and eight weeks after intervention

• Active control scale

  Eight weeks after intervention

• System Usability Scale

  Eight weeks after intervention

Other Outcomes (2)

• Willingness to pay single questions

  Eight weeks after intervention

• User experience via self-formulated open question

  Four and eight weeks after intervention

Study Arms (2)

PACO

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants are asked to use the intervention for eight weeks.

Behavioral: PACO

Waiting list + PACO

OTHER

Participants receive the same intervention, but only after a waiting period of four weeks.

Behavioral: Waiting list + PACO

Interventions

PACO BEHAVIORAL

The intervention is a fully-automated web-based eHealth application in which two embodied conversational agents engage in dialogue with older adults in order to motivate them towards dietary behavior change and decrease loneliness. The application consists of five different modules, each one applying different behavior change techniques.

PACO

Waiting list + PACO BEHAVIORAL

Waiting list + PACO

Waiting list + PACO

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 65 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Living independently at home
• Living without a partner
• No paid profession and at least 65 years of age
• Dutch speaking
• Able to use a tablet or computer
• Internet connection at home

You may not qualify if:

• Not willing to provide inform consent

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Wageningen University and Research: lead
• ZonMw: The Netherlands Organisation for Health Research and Development: collaborator
• WAAG: collaborator
• Roessingh Research and Development: collaborator
• National Foundation for the Elderly: collaborator

Study Sites (1)

Wageningen University & Research

Wageningen, Gelderland, 6706 KN, Netherlands

Location

Related Publications (2)

• Kramer LL, van Velsen L, Clark JL, Mulder BC, de Vet E. Use and Effect of Embodied Conversational Agents for Improving Eating Behavior and Decreasing Loneliness Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults: Randomized Controlled Trial. JMIR Form Res. 2022 Apr 11;6(4):e33974. doi: 10.2196/33974.

  PMID: 35404255 DERIVED

• Kramer LL, Mulder BC, van Velsen L, de Vet E. Use and Effect of Web-Based Embodied Conversational Agents for Improving Eating Behavior and Decreasing Loneliness Among Community-Dwelling Older Adults: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial. JMIR Res Protoc. 2021 Jan 6;10(1):e22186. doi: 10.2196/22186.

  PMID: 33404513 DERIVED

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Feeding Behavior

Interventions

Waiting Lists

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Behavior, Animal; Behavior

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Appointments and Schedules; Organization and Administration; Health Services Administration

Study Officials

• Emely de Vet, PhD

  Wageningen University & Research

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: SINGLE
• Who Masked: OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
• Purpose: SUPPORTIVE CARE
• Intervention Model: SEQUENTIAL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Researcher

Model Details: An unblinded randomized controlled trial. Participants in the first cohort directly receive the intervention for 8 weeks. Participants in the second cohort receive the intervention after a waiting list condition of 4 weeks, serving as a control group.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: July 13, 2020
• First Posted: August 12, 2020
• Study Start: July 13, 2020
• Primary Completion: December 30, 2020
• Study Completion: December 30, 2020
• Last Updated: April 8, 2021

Record last verified: 2021-04

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will share
• Shared Documents: STUDY PROTOCOL, SAP, ICF
• Time Frame: The data will become available within 12 months after the end of the study.

Locations

NL (1)