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Updated: Jun 15, 2025
Assessing the Accuracy of Fitness Smartwatch Data for Cardiovascular and Physical Activity Monitoring: A Validation Study in Digital Health
Published on: February 21, 2025
Smartwatch step counting: impact on daily step-count estimation accuracy
Peter Düking1, Jana Strahler2, André Forster3
1Department of Sports Science and Movement Pedagogy, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Germany.
Introduction:
The effect of displayed step count in smartwatches on the accuracy of daily step-count estimation and the potential underlying psychological factors have not been revealed. The study aimed for the following: (i) To investigate whether the counting and reporting of daily steps by a smartwatch increases the daily step-count estimation accuracy and (ii) to elucidating underlying psychological factors.
Methods:
A total of 34 healthy men and women participants wore smartwatches for 4 weeks. In week 1 (baseline), 3 (follow-up 1), and 8 (follow-up 2), the number of smartwatch displayed steps was blinded for each participant. In week 2 (Intervention), the number of steps was not blinded. During baseline and follow-ups 1 and 2, the participants were instructed to estimate their number of steps four times per day. During the 4-week wash-out period between follow-ups 1 and 2, no feedback was provided. The Body Awareness Questionnaire and the Body Responsiveness Questionnaire (BRQ) were used to elucidate the psychological facets of the assumed estimation accuracy.
Results:
The mean absolute percentage error between the participants' steps count estimations and measured steps counts were 29.49% (at baseline), 0.54% (intervention), 11.89% (follow-up 1), and 15.14% (follow-up 2), respectively. There was a significant effect between baseline and follow-up 1 [t (61.7) = 3.433, p < 0.001] but not between follow-up 1 and follow-up 2 [t (60.3) = -0.288, p = 0.774]. Only the BRQ subscale "Suppression of Bodily Sensations" appeared to be significant at the Baseline (p = 0.012; Bonferroni adjusted p = 0.048) as a factor influencing step-count estimation accuracy.
Conclusion:
The counting and reporting of daily steps with a smartwatch allows improving the subjective estimation accuracy of daily step counts, with a stabilizing effect for at least 6 weeks. Especially individuals who tend to suppress their bodily sensations are less accurate in their daily step-count estimation before the intervention.
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