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Building a Behavioural Intervention Programme to Improve Self-Management of Diabetes

Not Applicable
Active, not recruiting
Conditions
Diabetes
Interventions
Behavioral: Goal-Setting plus Weekly Nudge in Cycle 1
Behavioral: Fast-forwarding in Cycle 1
Behavioral: Fast-forwarding in Cycle 2
Behavioral: Goal-Setting plus Weekly Nudge in Cycle 2
Registration Number
NCT05203575
Lead Sponsor
National University of Singapore
Brief Summary

Effective control of diabetes requires patients to change their daily behaviour. The investigators propose an intervention programme for behavioural change with two components, targeting motivation and implementation. The motivation component raises the salience of probable patient-specific detrimental future outcomes by 'fast-forwarding' awareness of these outcomes to the present. The implementation component helps patients to set goals and to act based on weekly tips. A factorial design will be used to establish the necessity and sufficiency of the two components on changing mind and guiding behaviour to improve blood glucose level. Individual-level measures of psychological, physical and medical conditions will be shown to drive the heterogenous responses to the two components. Intervention is expanded into two cycles with crossover design to demonstrate how the individual-level measures drive the wear-off, built-up and persistence of the two components. The results of this two-component programme will serve as a basis for systematic synthesis of component-level effectiveness in behavioural intervention research.

Detailed Description

This behavioural-change-intervention programme will be an online 'single-centre' outpatient randomized controlled trial (RCT) with ten study arms. It will be a two-component intervention consisting of a motivation component of fast-forwarding and an implementation component of goal-setting and weekly nudges. The field intervention will be structured into a two-cycle four-treatment crossover design with four treatment conditions in the first cycle and crossing-over into eight treatment conditions (including one control condition) in the second cycle. In addition to the control group in the study, a group of patients from the Singapore Health Services (SingHealth) Diabetes Registry dataset will be identified using propensity scoring to serve as a 'match-pair' for each study participant. The electronic medical record of this match-pair will provide an additional benchmark of biological measure in addition to that provided by the control group.

The field study will run for 34 weeks, in two cycles of 14 weeks each, with a 2-week transition period between the two cycles. There will also be a 2-week baseline period in which baseline measurements will be taken before the first cycle begins and a 2-week debriefing period where the final measurement will be taken after the end of the second cycle. Measurements will be taken three times: once before Cycle 1 (as the baseline), once between Cycles 1 and 2, and once at the end of Cycle 2. Participants who are assigned to the motivation component of fast-forwarding will receive fast-forwarding immediately after the measurement session and before the cycle. The participants who are randomly assigned to treatment conditions, including the implementation component, will receive a weekly nudge programme with each 14-week cycle. All participants will have access to the resources used to generate the 14-week cycles.

The investigators will measure the following: (i) physiological and medical information related to the progression of diabetes; (ii) diet quality and exercise level; (iii) psychological reactions towards diabetes management; (iv) behavioural change readiness and commitment; and (v) lifestyle (smoking, alcohol consumption, and sleep quality).

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
ACTIVE_NOT_RECRUITING
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
225
Inclusion Criteria
  • Age between 21-70
  • Has type 2 diabetes
  • Comfortable communicating English
  • Uses smartphone app WhatsApp
Exclusion Criteria
  • Participants with diagnoses of mental health illnesses
  • Participants who are unable to provide informed consent

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
FACTORIAL
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
Fast-forwarding with weekly nudge in Cycle 1Fast-forwarding in Cycle 2Fast-forwarding interventions in both Cycles, plus weekly nudge intervention in Cycle 1
Fast-forwarding with weekly nudge in Cycle 2Goal-Setting plus Weekly Nudge in Cycle 2Fast-forwarding interventions in both Cycles, plus weekly nudge intervention in Cycle 2
Weekly nudge in Cycle 1Goal-Setting plus Weekly Nudge in Cycle 1Weekly nudge intervention in Cycle 1
Full interventionGoal-Setting plus Weekly Nudge in Cycle 2All interventions applied in all Cycles
Weekly nudge in Cycle 2Goal-Setting plus Weekly Nudge in Cycle 2Weekly nudge intervention in Cycle 2
Fast-forwardingFast-forwarding in Cycle 1Fast-forwarding interventions in both Cycles
Fast-forwarding with weekly nudge in Cycle 2Fast-forwarding in Cycle 2Fast-forwarding interventions in both Cycles, plus weekly nudge intervention in Cycle 2
Fast-forwarding with weekly nudge in Cycle 1Goal-Setting plus Weekly Nudge in Cycle 1Fast-forwarding interventions in both Cycles, plus weekly nudge intervention in Cycle 1
Full interventionFast-forwarding in Cycle 1All interventions applied in all Cycles
Fast-forwardingFast-forwarding in Cycle 2Fast-forwarding interventions in both Cycles
Fast-forwarding with weekly nudge in Cycle 2Fast-forwarding in Cycle 1Fast-forwarding interventions in both Cycles, plus weekly nudge intervention in Cycle 2
Fast-forwarding with weekly nudge in Cycle 1Fast-forwarding in Cycle 1Fast-forwarding interventions in both Cycles, plus weekly nudge intervention in Cycle 1
Full interventionGoal-Setting plus Weekly Nudge in Cycle 1All interventions applied in all Cycles
Weekly nudgeGoal-Setting plus Weekly Nudge in Cycle 1Weekly nudge interventions in both Cycles
Weekly nudgeGoal-Setting plus Weekly Nudge in Cycle 2Weekly nudge interventions in both Cycles
Full interventionFast-forwarding in Cycle 2All interventions applied in all Cycles
Full in Cycle 1Goal-Setting plus Weekly Nudge in Cycle 1Fast-forwarding and weekly nudge interventions in Cycle 1
Fast-forwarding in Cycle 1Fast-forwarding in Cycle 1Fast-forwarding intervention in Cycle 1
Full in Cycle 1Fast-forwarding in Cycle 1Fast-forwarding and weekly nudge interventions in Cycle 1
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
HbA1c after Cycle 1Measured between Weeks 17-18

Results from HbA1c test

HbA1c after Cycle 2Measured between Weeks 33-34

Results from HbA1c test

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Exercise levels after Cycle 1Measured between Weeks 17-18

Exercise level will be assessed based on the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ) developed by the World Health Organization in 2002 for chronic disease risk-factor surveillance

Readiness for behavioral change after Cycle 1Measured between Weeks 17-18

To assess readiness for behavioural change, the investigators will ask the participants to indicate their commitment to make changes to their diet and physical activity. Specifically, the investigators will ask them to name a food that they have been told to eat less of, and to indicate how many times they are willing to cut back on the food. Similarly, the investigators will ask the participants to indicate how much time per week they are willing to exercise to avoid future complications arising from their diabetes

Level of alcohol consumption after Cycle 1Measured between Weeks 17-18

Self-reported frequency of alcohol consumption

Level of alcohol consumption after Cycle 2Measured between Weeks 33-34

Self-reported frequency of alcohol consumption

Diet quality after Cycle 1Measured between Weeks 17-18

Diet quality will be measured using the well-validated Food Frequency Questionnaire

Exercise levels after Cycle 2Measured between Weeks 33-34

Exercise level will be assessed based on the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ) developed by the World Health Organization in 2002 for chronic disease risk-factor surveillance

Attitudes towards diabetes management after Cycle 2Measured between Weeks 33-34

The participants' psychological reactions towards diabetes treatment will be captured using three main groups of questionnaires. Their general attitudes towards diabetes will be measured using the Diabetes Attitude Survey developed and validated by the University of Michigan Diabetes Research and Training Center (MDRC). The investigators will measure how strongly the patients feel empowered to cope with and manage diabetes, which is a crucial outcome of DSME. Empowerment will be captured using the Diabetes Empowerment Scale (DES) developed by the MDRC. To gain insight into the psychological processes through which fast-forwarding and implementation influence health outcomes, the investigators will measure attitudes towards perceived barriers to diet adherence, exercise, and monitoring, using the respective subscales of the Diabetes Care Profile developed by MDTC

Diet quality after Cycle 2Measured between Weeks 33-34

Diet quality will be measured using the well-validated Food Frequency Questionnaire

Attitudes towards diabetes management after Cycle 1Measured between Weeks 17-18

The participants' psychological reactions towards diabetes treatment will be captured using three main groups of questionnaires. Their general attitudes towards diabetes will be measured using the Diabetes Attitude Survey developed and validated by the University of Michigan Diabetes Research and Training Center (MDRC). The investigators will measure how strongly the patients feel empowered to cope with and manage diabetes, which is a crucial outcome of DSME. Empowerment will be captured using the Diabetes Empowerment Scale (DES) developed by the MDRC. To gain insight into the psychological processes through which fast-forwarding and implementation influence health outcomes, the investigators will measure attitudes towards perceived barriers to diet adherence, exercise, and monitoring, using the respective subscales of the Diabetes Care Profile developed by MDTC

Sleep quality after Cycle 2Measured between Weeks 33-34

Self-reported quality of sleep

Smoking status after Cycle 2Measured between Weeks 33-34

Self-reported smoking status

Sleep quality after Cycle 1Measured between Weeks 17-18

Self-reported quality of sleep

Readiness for behavioral change after Cycle 2Measured between Weeks 33-34

To assess readiness for behavioural change, the investigators will ask the participants to indicate their commitment to make changes to their diet and physical activity. Specifically, the investigators will ask them to name a food that they have been told to eat less of, and to indicate how many times they are willing to cut back on the food. Similarly, the investigators will ask the participants to indicate how much time per week they are willing to exercise to avoid future complications arising from their diabetes

Smoking status after Cycle 1Measured between Weeks 17-18

Self-reported smoking status

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

National University of Singapore

🇸🇬

Singapore, Singapore

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