Evaluation of a Worksite-Based Small Group Team Challenge to Increase Physical Activity

To investigate whether participants in a small group team challenge had greater completion rates in an institution-wide step-challenge than other participants.

A quasi-experimental, posttest-only design with a comparison group was used to evaluate group differences in completion rates.

A large university system provided the opportunity to participate in a physical activity challenge.

The study was limited to employees who participated in the physical activity challenge.

Two institutions offered participants the chance to compete as smaller groups of teams within their institution. These team-challenge participants (N = 414) were compared to participants from the same institutions that did not sign up for a team and tracked their steps individually (N = 1454).

Participants who reported 50 000 steps per week for 5 of the 6 weeks were classified as challenge completers. We also evaluated total step count and controlled for several potential covariates including age, gender, and body mass index.

Logistic regression was used to model the dichotomous outcome of challenge completion.

Team-challenge participants were more likely to complete the physical activity challenge than other participants. Team-challenge participants had 1922 more steps per day than individual participants. However, at an institution level, overall completion rates were not higher at institutions that offered a team challenge.