Physical and Psychosocial Effects of Wii Fit Exergames Use in Assisted Living Residents

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the physical and psychosocial effects of the Wii Fit exergames incorporating self-efficacy theory on assisted living residents. The study was a quasi-experimental pre/post-test design. Thirty-two participants were recruited from two assisted living facilities. Sixteen participants received the Wii Fit exergames incorporating self-efficacy theory twice a week for 4 weeks. The other participants received a health education program. Physical function, fear of falling, depression, and quality of life were evaluated. T tests were used for data analysis. After the 4-week intervention, the Wii Fit group showed significant improvements in balance (p < .01), mobility (p < .01), and depression (p < .05). The education group showed no significant improvement in any of the outcomes. Integrating concepts of self-efficacy theory with the exergames show promise as a potential tool to improve and maintain physical and psychosocial health for older adults.

Exergames for Older Adults with Subthreshold Depression: Does Higher Playfulness Lead to Better Improvement in Depression?

“…Consequently, consistent with the findings from Chao et al 22 and Rosenberg et al, 24 the findings confirmed the antidepressant effect of exergames on the aging population, by using a sample of community-dwelling older adults in Singapore. In addition, the significant positive effects of exergames on positive emotions and self-efficacy were also supported in the study.…”

“…21 Recent studies have applied exergames into the healthcare domain and investigated their antidepressant effect among older adults. 22,23 Nevertheless, since the majority of these studies have focused on major depression, few efforts were made on subthreshold depression. To our knowledge, a pilot study from Rosenberg et al 24 was the only exception that supported the short-term efficacy of exergames on subthreshold depression among older adults.…”

Understanding the Wii Exergames Use: Voices from Assisted Living Residents

“…Therefore, this article reports the analysis of interview findings of 15 participants who participated in our pilot study. Findings from the quantitative outcome measures of the same study were reported elsewhere (Chao, Scherer, Montogomery, Wu, & Lucke, 2014b).…”

Exercise and rehabilitation delivered through exergames in older adults: An integrative review of technologies, safety and efficacy

“…For the 35 studies using Nintendo Wii, two studies used only the Wii Sports bowling game (34,55), while the remaining 33 studies used two or more games during the intervention. Furthermore, 11 of the Nintendo Wii studies used games that targeted balance only (11, 35, 37, 42-44, 47, 57, 58, 73, 82), while 16 used a combination of games that targeted different physical functions in addition to balance, such as strength, endurance, and mobility (10,13,32,40,45,49,52,56,60,69,70,74,77,80,81,86). For those studies that did not utilize Nintendo Wii, only three studies (51,79,84) aimed to have an effect on more than one physical function.…”