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Effectiveness of the FLOW Program Among Heavy Computer-Using Employees: A Pilot Study by Renee Nasajon, Psy.D., Jonathan N. Tobin, Ph.D., & Cory Mitchell, B.S. FLOW Pilot Study: Background. alarming increase in incidence/prevalence of chronic
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Effectiveness of the FLOW Program Among Heavy Computer-Using Employees: A Pilot Study by Renee Nasajon, Psy.D., Jonathan N. Tobin, Ph.D., & Cory Mitchell, B.S.
FLOW Pilot Study: Background • alarming increase in incidence/prevalence of chronic diseases among working Americans during past decades. • growing tendency towards a sedentary lifestyle. • + correlation between lack of physical activity & development of chronic conditions (CVD’s, hypertension, colon cancer, diabetes, obesity, osteoporosis, RSI’s). • regular moderate levels of exercise can: • prevent development of chronic disease/ infectious diseases • improve cognitive performance • alleviate symptoms of anxiety, stress, and depression.
FLOW Pilot Study: Objective • PRIMARY OBJECTIVE: Evaluate effectiveness of FLOW intervention to increase employees’ levels of physical activity inside & outside working hours. • SECONDARY OBJECTIVE: Asses changes in emotional/coping indices (depression, stress, anxiety); in health-risk behaviors (smoking, caffeine consumption), & physiological measures (weight, BMI, BP).
FLOW Pilot Study: Methods • Repeated measures (pre-post) design • Sample . 17 healthy adult deskbound workers . from two HUDSON RIVER HEALTHCARE community centers (Peekskill, NY & Walden, NY) . ages 18-65 . 75% + time spent at desk • Exclusions . arteriosclerosis . hypoglycemia . high/low blood pressure . pregnancy, etc.
FLOW Pilot Study: Measures • Sociodemographics • Body Mass Index (BMI) • Diastolic/Systolic Blood Pressure (DBP & SBP) • Tobacco, alcohol, & caffeine consumption • Snacking • Physical activity outside of work • Bi-monthly self-report
FLOW Pilot Study: Measures • Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS; Lovibond & Lovibond, 1995) • Stanford Sleepiness Scale (SSS; Hoddes, Zarcone, Smythe, Phillips, and Dement, 1973) • Quality of Life Index (QLI; Ferrans & Powers, 1985)
FLOW Pilot Study: Analysis • One way Analysis of Variance • Repeated Measures design • Chi-Square • Locally weighted scatterplot smoothing (lowness) used to visually inspect significant findings
FLOW Pilot Study: Results Employees who participated in the FLOW Pilot Study showed: • Reduction of SBP & DBP (16 pts. p< .05 & 7 pts. p<.053) • Increased physical activity outside work (p< .05) • Improved levels of alertness/energy (p< .05) • Improvement in mood (trend)
Blood Pressure: decreases SBP ( 16 pts., p < 0.05; M = 16 pts) decreases DBP (7 pts., p < 0.053; M = 7 pts)
FLOW Pilot Study: Limitations • Small sample size • No control group • Short follow-up period • No objective measure of daily FLOW use frequency CONCLUSIONS Results from FLOW Pilot Study warrant a larger scale controlled study
References . Lovibond, S.H., & Lovibond, P.F. (1995). Manual for the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (2nd ed.). Sydney, Australia: Psychology Foundation of Australia. . Hoddes, E., Zarcone, V., Smythe, H., Phillips, R., & Dement, W.C. (1973). Quantification of sleepiness: A new approach. Psychophysiology, 10, 431-436 . Ferrans, C., & Powers, M. (1985). Quality of Life Index: Development and psychometric properties. Advances in Nursing Science, 8, 15-24.