Attention, Learning, Memory, Mood, Sleep, Stress
Conditions
Brief summary
The investigators are interested in finding accessible interventions for youth and young adults that help promote long-term positive mental health functioning. They will be investigating the effects of Team Unbreakable, a 13-week, twice weekly running group, on mental health symptoms, memory, and attention. This intervention will hopefully improve mental health functioning in youth aged 17-25 that are at high risk of developing mental health disorders. Sessions will consist of 30 minutes of running under the supervision of group leaders and coaches. The group will steadily increase the distance and time spent running versus walking, with the goal of having everyone run a 5 km race together at the end of 13 weeks. Once a week, youth will be provided with education on a variety of topics related to health and running. Youth will complete measures before, during, and after the program to assess outcomes.
Interventions
OTHERRunning
A 13-week running program where youth run for 30 minutes twice weekly.
Sponsors
St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton
Study design
Allocation
NA
Intervention model
SINGLE_GROUP
Primary purpose
OTHER
Masking
NONE
Intervention model description
This is an open-label pilot study examining the effects of exercise on mood, learning, memory, attention, stress, and sleeping habits.
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
17 Years to 25 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* Healthy enough to participate in physical activity
Exclusion criteria
* NOT excluded on basis of mental health or addiction concerns
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Patient Health Questionnaire 9 (PHQ-9) | Starting 1 month to 2 weeks prior to group. Administered on a bi-weekly schedule ending 6 months after the conclusion of the running group. | Nine-item self-report measure designed to monitor the severity of depressive symptoms using the diagnostic criteria found in the DSM-IV |
| Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7 (GAD-7) | Starting 1 month to 2 weeks prior to group. Administered on a bi-weekly schedule ending 6 months after the conclusion of the running group. | Seven-item self-report anxiety questionnaire designed to monitor and assess the severity of generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) symptoms, using the prominent diagnostic features found in the DSM-IV |
| Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K-10) | Starting 1 month to 2 weeks prior to group. Administered on a 4-week schedule ending 6 months after the conclusion of the running group. | Ten-item self-report measure of global psychological distress |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Work and Social Adjustment Scale (WSAS) | Starting 1 month to 2 weeks prior to group. Administered on a 4-week schedule ending 6 months after the conclusion of the running group. | Five-item self-report measure of impairment in functioning |
| Physical Activity and Sleep | Starting 1 month to 2 weeks prior to group auto-recorded ending 6 months after the conclusion of the running group. | Participants will use a Fitbit to monitor their overall activity (e.g., steps, distance, active minutes, etc.) and sleep patterns before, during, and after treatment |
| Delis-Kramer Executive Function Tower Task | At baseline and 1-week after exercise program ends. | Assesses spatial planning, rule learning, and response inhibition |
| Hopkins Verbal Learning Task | At baseline and 1-week after exercise program ends. | Tests participants' memory for a list of 12 nouns drawn from 3 categories, and measures immediate and delayed recall and recognition |
| PTSD Checklist for DSM-V (PCL-5) | Starting 1 month to 2 weeks prior to group. Administered on a 4-week schedule ending 6 months after the conclusion of the running group. | Twenty-item self-report measure of PTSD based on the DSM-V diagnostic criteria |
| Concentration Memory Task | At baseline and 1-week after running program ends. | A test of high interference spatial memory. Participants search for pairs of matching cards and are periodically tested on which of two locations an item appeared in most recently |
| Town Square | At baseline and 1-week after running program ends. | A test of viewpoint-dependent and -independent spatial memory for a set of visually presented items in a town square |
| Wechsler Test of Adult Reading | At baseline | A test to assess pre-morbid intellectual functioning by having the participants verbally speak a list of 50 irregular words |
| N-back | At baseline and 1-week after exercise program ends. | A test of executive function (working memory), requiring the participant to observe a sequence of items and click on targets that are repeats n items ago |
| Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES) | Starting 1 month to 2 weeks prior to group. Administered on a 4-week schedule ending 6 months after the conclusion of the running group. | Ten-item self-report measure of global feelings of self-worth |
| Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support | Starting 1 month to 2 weeks prior to group. Administered on a 4-week schedule ending 6 months after the conclusion of the running group. | Twelve-item self-report measure of perceived support from three sources: Family, friends, and a significant other |
Countries
Canada
Outcome results
None listed