A Skills-based RCT for Physical Activity Using Peer Mentors

The goal of this study is to positively impact the physical activity patterns to improve health outcomes including the high rates of obesity in Appalachian teens. The approach will train peer mentors to deliver the culturally appropriate intervention and provide social support that is critical for facilitating and sustaining health behavior change. The primary objective is to compare the efficacy of an innovative healthy lifestyle skills mentoring program (Mentored Planning to be Active \[MBA\]) to a teacher led program (PBA) for increasing physical activity in Appalachian high school teens. MBA emphasizes the social determinants of health by using a social networking approach that trains peer mentors to support targeted teens. Refined over the course of 3 studies,2-4 PBA is a ten-lesson unit delivered over 10 weeks and designed to teach self-regulation of physical activity among teens. Expanding PBA to mentors via MBA has the potential to promote and sustain adoption of daily regular physical activity through self-regulation of physical activity in discretionary time. With MBA delivery, physical activity is tailored to personal interests, talents, and neighborhood environment. MBA empowers students to plan and evaluate their own personal activity plan. It is predicted that by serving as role models, peer mentors will improve their own lifestyle behaviors, providing a double-edged intervention. It is also predicted that providing intense and structured social support to teens via peer mentors will result in better health outcomes compared to teacher-based support alone (usual care). The plan is to conduct a group randomized controlled trial to evaluate the effects of a culturally and theoretically based behavioral intervention delivered by peer mentors (MBA) on adolescent healthy behaviors (daily physical activity, regular exercise, and sedentary behaviors) and physical health outcomes (BMI, body fat) compared to PBA delivered in a classroom setting by a teacher.