Using Bluetooth Beacon Technology to Reduce Distracted Pedestrian Behavior

Not Applicable

Completed

• Conditions: Health Behavior
• Interventions: Behavioral: beacon alerts; Behavioral: no alerts retention

• Registration Number: NCT03604497
• Lead Sponsor: University of Alabama at Birmingham

Brief Summary

Over 4,800 American pedestrians die annually, a figure that is current increasing. One hypothesized reason for the increasing trend in pedestrian injuries and deaths is the role of mobile technology in distracting both pedestrians and drivers. The investigators propose to develop and then evaluate Bluetooth beacon technology as a means to alert and warn pedestrians when they are approaching dangerous intersections, reminding them to attend to the traffic environment and cross the street safely rather than engaging with mobile technology. One aspect of the research will involve a crossover research trial to evaluate efficacy of the program.

Bluetooth beacons are very small (about the size of a dime) and inexpensive (\~$20 range) devices that broadcast information unidirectionally (beacon to smartphone) within a closed proximal network. The investigators propose placing beacons at intersection corners (e.g., on signposts) frequently trafficked by urban college students. The beacons will transmit to an app installed on users' smartphones, signaling users to attend to their environment and cross the street safely. The app will be developed to be flexible based on user preferences; for research purposes, the app also will download data concerning the users' behavior while crossing the street. The crossover trial will evaluate the app with a sample of about 411 young adults whose behavior is monitored for: (a) 3 weeks without the app being activated, (b) 3 weeks with the app activated, and then (c) 6 weeks without the app activated to assess retention of behavior. Throughout the 12 week period, the investigators will monitor user behavior at multiple intersections around campus, along with gathering self-report questionnaire perceptions and behavior at baseline and 12-week post-intervention assessments.

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Study First Submitted: 2018-07-11
• Study First Submitted QC: 2018-07-19
• Study First Posted: 2018-07-27
• Study Start: 2019-08-15
• Primary Completion: 2019-12-21
• Study Completion: 2019-12-21
• Results First Submitted: 2020-10-09
• Status Verified: 2020-11
• Results First Submitted QC: 2020-11-02
• Last Update Submitted: 2020-11-02
• Results First Posted: 2020-11-24
• Last Update Posted: 2020-11-24

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: COMPLETED
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 437

Inclusion Criteria

• individuals who cross streets on the UAB campus at least twice daily
• ownership of an Android phone
• willingness to install the app on phone
• ability to communicate in English

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Exclusion Criteria

• none

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Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: CROSSOVER

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
beacon alerts	beacon alerts	active intervention - participants are receiving alerts to warn them about distracted pedestrian behavior near intersections
no alerts retention	no alerts retention	retention phase - alerts have stopped after active intervention and behavior is monitored to test retention of learned behavior

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Percentage of Street Crossings Distracted	12 weeks	percentage of street-crossings participants is distracted while crossing streets in intersections involved in the study, as measured electronically by smartphone behavior near those intersections. Electronic measurement was based on x-y-z coordinates of the smartphone during the crossing, as assessed and stored in the participants' phone storage.

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

UAB Youth Safety Lab, University of Alabama at Birmingham; 🇺🇸 Birmingham, Alabama, United States