Feasible but Not Yet Efficacious: A Scoping Review of Wearable Activity Monitors in Interventions Targeting Physical Activity, Sedentary Behavior, and Sleep

The present review aimed to explore the range and characteristics of interventions that utilize WAM and descriptively summarize the efficacy of these interventions.

A total of 65 articles (61 studies) were included in this review. Most of the WAM-based interventions (n=58) were designed to improve physical activity (PA). Interventions targeting sedentary behavior (SB) were much less common (n=12), and even less frequent were WAM-based sleep interventions (n=3). Most studies tested the feasibility of WAM-based interventions; hence, efficacy of these interventions in improving PA, SB, and/or sleep could not be conclusively determined. Nonetheless, WAM-based interventions showed considerable potential in increasing PA and decreasing SB.

WAM-based PA interventions exhibited preliminary efficacy in increasing PA. Although not as many interventions were focused on SB, current interventions also showed potential in decreasing sedentary time. Meanwhile, more evidence is needed to determine the utility of WAM in improving sleep. Major challenges with including WAM as part of interventions are reduced engagement in using the devices over time and the rapid changes in technology resulting in devices becoming obsolete soon after completion of an efficacy trial.