Effectiveness of virtual and augmented reality-enhanced exercise on physical activity, psychological outcomes, and physical performance: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

an article by Yu-Leung Ng (Hong Kong Baptist University), Flora Ma and King-wa Fu (The University of Hong Kong, Eliot Hall) and Frederick K. Ho and Patrick Ip (The University of Hong Kong, Queen Mary Hospital) published in Computers in Human Behavior Volume 99 (October 2019)

Highlights

• This study compared VR- and AR-exercise and traditional and no-exercise programs.
• VR training programs were effective for enhancing frequency of physical activity.
• VR and AR programs were effective for improving strength of physical performance.
• Further studies of AR-enhanced exercise using randomized controlled trials are warranted.

Abstract

Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR)-enhanced exercise training is a novel approach to promoting health. Previous systematic reviews have focused on the effectiveness of VR interventions in clinical settings. The present study was the first systematic review to investigate the effectiveness of exercise-based VR and AR training as preventive measures in improving physical activity, psychological outcomes, and physical performance of a healthy population when compared with traditional programs and no-exercise controls.

This study included 22 research articles published between 1997 and 2017, involving 1,184 participants aged 18 to 79.
The results showed a large effect on physical activity (Hedges' g = 0.83, SE = 0.18), a small to moderate effect on physical performance (Hedges’ g = 0.31, SE = 0.09), and no significant effect on psychological outcomes.

VR training programs were particularly shown to be effective for enhancing frequency of physical activity and strength of physical performance.

Only two studies examined the effectiveness of AR training programs on physical performance, and the findings concerning those effects were not separately reported.

A list of plausible moderators was tested but that variable was not significantly associated with the effects of VR on the three outcomes.

Limitations and future directions are discussed.

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Describing a principles-based approach to developing and evaluating peer worker roles as peer support moves into mainstream mental health services

an article by Steve Gillard, Rhiannon Foster, Sarah Gibson, Lucy Goldsmith, Jacqueline Marks and Sarah White (Population Health Research Institute, St George’s, University of London, UK) published in Mental Health and Social Inclusion Volume 21 Issue 3 (June 2017)

Abstract

Purpose
Peer support is increasingly being introduced into mainstream mental health services internationally. The distinctiveness of peer support, compared to other mental health support, has been linked to values underpinning peer support. Evidence suggests that there are challenges to maintaining those values in the context of highly standardised organisational environments. The purpose of this paper is to describe a “principles-based” approach to developing and evaluating a new peer worker role in mental health services.

Design/methodology/approach
A set of peer support values was generated through systematic review of research about one-to-one peer support, and a second set produced by a UK National Expert Panel of people sharing, leading or researching peer support from a lived experience perspective. Value sets were integrated by the research team – including researchers working from a lived experience perspective – to produce a principles framework for developing and evaluating new peer worker roles.

Findings
Five principles referred in detail to: relationships based on shared lived experience; reciprocity and mutuality; validating experiential knowledge; leadership, choice and control; discovering strengths and making connections. Supporting the diversity of lived experience that people bring to peer support applied across principles.

Research limitations/implications
The principles framework underpinned development of a handbook for a new peer worker role, and informed a fidelity index designed to measure the extent to which peer support values are maintained in practice. Given the diversity of peer support, the authors caution against prescriptive frameworks that might “codify” peer support and note that lived experience should be central to shaping and leading evaluation of peer support.

Originality/value
This paper adds to the literature on peer support in mental health by describing a systematic approach to understanding how principles and values underpin peer worker roles in the context of mental health services. This paper informs an innovative, principles-based approach to developing a handbook and fidelity index for a randomised controlled trial. Lived experiences of mental distress brought to the research by members of the research team and the expert advisors shaped the way this research was undertaken.

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