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Walking for a cause: study tests if games and charity boost family fitness

NCT ID NCT04942535

Knowledge-focused Sponsor: Abramson Cancer Center at Penn Medicine Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

What the study statuses mean

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Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed This study
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026

Summary

This study tested whether social incentives like gamification and charity donations can help low-income families increase their physical activity. Nearly 800 participants from the Philadelphia area wore Fitbits and formed family teams. Each week, a random family member's step goal determined if the team kept points or lost them, with the chance to donate to charity. The goal was to see if these strategies could boost daily step counts over 12 months.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance
Social incentive gamification and charity-based financial incentives
What this could lead to
If successful, this could point toward effective, low-cost ways to increase physical activity in underserved communities.
What could go wrong
This is a completed study, but results may not apply to all populations. The intervention relies on family teams and wearable devices, which may not work for everyone.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Not a phased trial

Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.

Participants

779 people

The number who actually took part.

Started

Sep 2021

Finished

Oct 2025

Lead sponsor

Other sponsor

The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

14 years and older

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Accepted

You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: * Able to read and speak English; * Has a smartphone or tablet; * Lives in the Philadelphia area; * Age 14 or older; * Able to provide informed consent; * Enrolled as a member of a 2 to 10 member family team with least one member 60 years or older. Exclusion Criteria: * Already participating in another physical activity study; * An 18-month physical activity program is infeasible (e.g., metastatic cancer, unable to ambulate or provide informed consent) or unsafe (currently pregnant or told by a physician not to exercise); * Do not have sufficient eyesight or dexterity to operate device; * Average step count greater than 7,500 steps/day during the run-in period.

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

Motor Activity

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Physical activity

Contacts and locations

Locations

  • University of Pennsylvania

    Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19104, United States

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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.