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Trial registered on ANZCTR


Registration number
ACTRN12615000036516
Ethics application status
Approved
Date submitted
1/12/2014
Date registered
19/01/2015
Date last updated
19/01/2016
Type of registration
Retrospectively registered

Titles & IDs
Public title
Developing and testing a motivating communication/teaching style for Les Mills International instructors: A pilot study
Scientific title
Evaluation of the feasibility and fidelity of a motivation-based communication training intervention with Les Mills International instructors: Effects on clients’ perceptions of instructor motivational style.
Secondary ID [1] 285771 0
None
Universal Trial Number (UTN)
Trial acronym
Linked study record

Health condition
Health condition(s) or problem(s) studied:
Perceptions of the degree to which Les Mills International instructors are motivationally supportive toward their clients. 293653 0
Condition category
Condition code
Other 293949 293949 0 0
Research that is not of generic health relevance and not applicable to specific health categories listed above

Intervention/exposure
Study type
Interventional
Description of intervention(s) / exposure
The intervention will involve 3 workshops delivered by the research team, each lasting 2-3 hours. The workshops will be developed according to self-determination theory (Deci & Ryan 1985).

In the first workshop (3 hours), the basic principles of motivation (based on self-determination theory) will be introduced and specific examples of how these can be manifested in a fitness setting provided. Instructors will be introduced to different communication styles, using examples of fitness-client interactions. Furthermore, how different styles can have a powerful influence on client motivation and adherence will be explained. Group discussions will focus on how to implement a motivationally supportive instructional style and how to avoid using motivationally unsupportive strategies. The latter part of the workshop will involve brainstorming sessions as to how these ideas can be put into practice in a Les Mills RPM session. At the end of the workshop, instructors will be given specially prepared hand-outs on motivation to reinforce and supplement the content of the workshop.

After the first workshop, the instructors will be asked to reflect on their own teaching and practise some of the motivational strategies that they were taught in the first workshop. They will also be asked to keep a reflective diary describing what worked, what didn’t, obstacles and ways of overcoming them. They will be encouraged to connect face-to-face or via technology (e.g., an invitation-only Facebook page) to brainstorm examples of good and bad practice. Further, on-line material will be available to supplement and augment the material covered in the workshops.

Two weeks following the initial workshop, a booster 3-hour workshop will be offered during which successes and pitfalls in implementing the motivational strategies will be discussed. In addition, reflective diaries will be shared, and further advice will be offered to overcome obstacles. In the second half of the session instructors will be encouraged to use role play to practice using some of the motivational strategies in a mock RPM session.

During the third and fourth month of the project, the instructors will be asked to continue keeping a reflective diary and using our online material. A booster training workshop of 2 hours will be offered 8 weeks after the second workshop, at the end of the fourth month of the project. The booster workshop will reinforce the messages from workshops 1 and 2 and give the instructors the opportunity to share how they have found putting into practice the motivational strategies discussed.

Additional support will be offered by the researchers to the instructors via telephone or email/Facebook consultations. On the Facebook page we will upload examples of best practice (with commentary from the research team), and there will also be an on-line discussion forum. For that forum, we will encourage the contribution of the 4-5 experienced fitness instructors who will be identified at the beginning of the project.
Intervention code [1] 290730 0
Behaviour
Comparator / control treatment
The active control group will consist of Les Mills RPM instructors who will receive no treatment/training during the intervention period. At the end of the intervention period, in the fifth month of the project, the control group will be given the opportunity to receive training exploring motivational strategies that can be used when instructing fitness classes.
Control group
Active

Outcomes
Primary outcome [1] 293724 0
Clients’ perceptions of instructors’ motivational style including: autonomy support (short version of the Health-Care Client questionnaire by Williams & Deci, 1996, adapted for the fitness context), controlling and non-need supportive behaviours (items written for the study), and Structure and Involvement (items adapted from Markland and Tobin, 2010).
Timepoint [1] 293724 0
Baseline (measured within 3 weeks prior to the first workshop), at the end of the training programme (within 2 weeks following the third workshop), and within 4-6 weeks after the end of the third workshop. The time interval between the first and third workshop will be about 2 months.
Secondary outcome [1] 311666 0
Instructor reported motivational style: autonomy support (short version of the Health-Care Client Questionnaire, by Williams and Deci, 2006, adapted for the fitness context), controlling and non-need supportive behaviours (items written for this study), and structure and involvement (items adapted from Markland and Tobin, 2010).
Timepoint [1] 311666 0
Baseline (measured within 3 weeks prior to the first workshop), at the end of the training programme (within 2 weeks following the third workshop), and within 4-6 weeks after the end of the third workshop. The time interval between the first and third workshop will be about 2 months.
Secondary outcome [2] 312059 0
Instructor reported basic need satisfaction using the basic need satisfaction items from Chen et al.’s (under review) Basic Need Satisfaction and Frustration Scale.
Timepoint [2] 312059 0
Baseline (measured within 3 weeks prior to the first workshop), at the end of the training programme (within 2 weeks following the third workshop), and within 4-6 weeks after the end of the third workshop. The time interval between the first and third workshop will be about 2 months.
Secondary outcome [3] 312060 0
Instructor motivation to teach Les Mills RPM classes measured using Trembley et al.’s (2009) Work Extrinsic and Intrinsic Motivation Scale.
Timepoint [3] 312060 0
Baseline (measured within 3 weeks prior to the first workshop), at the end of the training programme (within 2 weeks following the third workshop), and within 4-6 weeks after the end of the third workshop. The time interval between the first and third workshop will be about 2 months.
Secondary outcome [4] 312061 0
Instructor subjective vitality (Ryan & Fredrick, 1997).
Timepoint [4] 312061 0
Baseline (measured within 3 weeks prior to the first workshop), at the end of the training programme (within 2 weeks following the third workshop), and within 4-6 weeks after the end of the third workshop. The time interval between the first and third workshop will be about 2 months.
Secondary outcome [5] 312062 0
Clients’ reported motivation to attend the Les Mills RPM class (Behavioural Regulation in Exercise Questionnaire-2; Markland & Tobin, 2004)
Timepoint [5] 312062 0
Baseline (measured within 3 weeks prior to the first workshop), at the end of the training programme (within 2 weeks following the third workshop), and within 4-6 weeks after the end of the third workshop. The time interval between the first and third workshop will be about 2 months.
Secondary outcome [6] 312063 0
Client's reported basic need satisfaction (Vlachopoulos, Ntoumanis, & Smith, 2010).
Timepoint [6] 312063 0
Baseline (measured within 3 weeks prior to the first workshop), at the end of the training programme (within 2 weeks following the third workshop), and within 4-6 weeks after the end of the third workshop. The time interval between the first and third workshop will be about 2 months.
Secondary outcome [7] 312064 0
Client's reported subjective vitality (Ryan & Fredrick, 1997),
Timepoint [7] 312064 0
Baseline (measured within 3 weeks prior to the first workshop), at the end of the training programme (within 2 weeks following the third workshop), and within 4-6 weeks after the end of the third workshop. The time interval between the first and third workshop will be about 2 months.
Secondary outcome [8] 312065 0
Client's intentions to continue participating in Les Mills RPM classes (measured using four items designed for this study). Responses to items were measured on a 5-point Likert Scale from strongly disagree to strongly agree.
Timepoint [8] 312065 0
Baseline (measured within 3 weeks prior to the first workshop), at the end of the training programme (within 2 weeks following the third workshop), and within 4-6 weeks after the end of the third workshop. The time interval between the first and third workshop will be about 2 months.
Secondary outcome [9] 312066 0
We have also developed items for an observational sheet that blinded raters can use to capture instructor autonomy support, structure, involvement, and control.
Timepoint [9] 312066 0
Baseline (measured within 3 weeks prior to the first workshop), at the end of the training programme (within 2 weeks following the third workshop), and within 4-6 weeks after the end of the third workshop. The time interval between the first and third workshop will be about 2 months.

Eligibility
Key inclusion criteria
Inclusion criteria for instructors in the intervention group: participant (i) is a registered Les Mills International RPM instructor (ii) teaches at least one RPM session a week on a regular basis (i.e., teaches the same class every week); (iii) operates within 50km of Perth, Australia.

Inclusion criteria for instructors in the control group: participant (i) is a registered Les Mills International RPM instructor (ii) teaches at least one RPM session a week on a regular basis (i.e., teaches the same class every week); (iii) operates within Australia but not within 50km of Perth.

Inclusion criteria for clients: Client (i) attends an RPM class run by one of the Les Mills International instructors in either the intervention or the control group; (ii) is willing and able to complete and return the questionnaire pack to the researchers within the allotted time periods.
Minimum age
18 Years
Maximum age
70 Years
Sex
Both males and females
Can healthy volunteers participate?
Yes
Key exclusion criteria
Exclusion criteria for instructors intervention group: participant (i) is not a registered Les Mills International RPM instructor (ii) does not teach at least one RPM session a week on a regular basis (i.e., does not teach the same class every week); (iii) operates outside 50km of Perth, Australia (iii) is not able to attend all three intervention workshops.

Exclusion criteria for instructors in the control group: participant (i) is not a registered Les Mills International RPM instructor (ii) does not teach at least one RPM session a week on a regular basis (i.e., does not teach the same class every week); (iii) operates within 50km of Perth, Australia.

Exclusion criteria for clients: Client (i) does not attend an RPM class run by one of the Les Mills instructors in either the intervention or the control group; (ii) is not able or willing to complete and return the questionnaire pack to the researchers within the allotted time periods for any reason.

Study design
Purpose of the study
Educational / counselling / training
Allocation to intervention
Non-randomised trial
Procedure for enrolling a subject and allocating the treatment (allocation concealment procedures)
Methods used to generate the sequence in which subjects will be randomised (sequence generation)
Masking / blinding
Blinded (masking used)
Who is / are masked / blinded?
The people receiving the treatment/s


Intervention assignment
Parallel
Other design features
Phase
Not Applicable
Type of endpoint/s
Efficacy
Statistical methods / analysis
Providing the numbers of participants recruited is as planned, data will be analysed using multi-level growth modelling.

Recruitment
Recruitment status
Completed
Date of first participant enrolment
Anticipated
1/10/2014
Actual
4/10/2014
Date of last participant enrolment
Anticipated
Actual
16/11/2014
Date of last data collection
Anticipated
Actual
Sample size
Target
50
Accrual to date
Final
40
Recruitment in Australia
Recruitment state(s)
ACT,NSW,NT,QLD,SA,WA,VIC

Funding & Sponsors
Funding source category [1] 290335 0
Commercial sector/Industry
Name [1] 290335 0
Les Mills International Ltd
Country [1] 290335 0
New Zealand
Primary sponsor type
Individual
Name
Nikos Ntoumanis
Address
School of Psychology & Speech Pathology, Curtin University,
GPO Box U1987 Perth, Western Australia, 6845
Country
Australia
Secondary sponsor category [1] 289052 0
None
Name [1] 289052 0
Address [1] 289052 0
Country [1] 289052 0

Ethics approval
Ethics application status
Approved
Ethics committee name [1] 292041 0
Curtin University
Ethics committee address [1] 292041 0
Office of Research and Development
Curtin University
GPO Box U 1987
Perth, Western Australia 6845
Ethics committee country [1] 292041 0
Australia
Date submitted for ethics approval [1] 292041 0
Approval date [1] 292041 0
01/09/2014
Ethics approval number [1] 292041 0
PSYCH SP 2014-59

Summary
Brief summary
The primary purpose of the study is to develop and test a motivating communication/teaching style for Les Mills International instructors. More specifically the study will examine the feasibility and fidelity of delivering a motivation-based communication training intervention with Les Mills International instructors and test the effects of the intervention on clients’ perceptions of the instructors’ motivational style.
Trial website
Trial related presentations / publications
Hancox, J.E., Quested, E., Thøgersen-Ntoumani, C., & Ntoumanis, N. (2015). An intervention to train group exercise class instructors to adopt a motivationally adaptive communication style: A quasi-experimental study protocol. Health Psychology and Behavioural Medicine, 3, 190-203
Public notes

Contacts
Principal investigator
Name 53190 0
Prof Nikos Ntoumanis
Address 53190 0
School of Psychology & Speech Pathology
Curtin University
GPO Box U1987
Perth, Western Australia, 6845
Country 53190 0
Australia
Phone 53190 0
+61(0)8 92663297
Fax 53190 0
Email 53190 0
[email protected]
Contact person for public queries
Name 53191 0
Nikos Ntoumanis
Address 53191 0
School of Psychology & Speech Pathology
Curtin University
GPO Box U1987
Perth, Western Australia, 6845
Country 53191 0
Australia
Phone 53191 0
+61(0)8 92663297
Fax 53191 0
Email 53191 0
[email protected]
Contact person for scientific queries
Name 53192 0
Nikos Ntoumanis
Address 53192 0
School of Psychology & Speech Pathology
Curtin University
GPO Box U1987
Perth, Western Australia, 6845
Country 53192 0
Australia
Phone 53192 0
+61(0)8 92663297
Fax 53192 0
Email 53192 0
[email protected]

No information has been provided regarding IPD availability


What supporting documents are/will be available?

No Supporting Document Provided



Results publications and other study-related documents

Documents added manually
No documents have been uploaded by study researchers.

Documents added automatically
No additional documents have been identified.