Systematic review and meta analysis of standalone digital behavior change interventions on physical activity
Open accessAbstract
Physical inactivity contributes to chronic diseases globally. Digital behavior change interventions (DBCIs) offer scalable solutions, but previous meta-analyses often combined them with other interventions. This systematic review and meta-analysis evaluated the standalone effects of DBCIs on physical activity (PA) and body metrics in adults. We searched five databases and included 18 randomized controlled trials. Standalone DBCIs significantly improved PA (SMD = 0.324; low-certainty evidence) and body metrics (SMD = 0.269; moderate-certainty evidence). PA improvements were greater in adults with unhealthy conditions compared to healthy individuals. Body metrics improvements were more pronounced in healthy adults. Sensitivity analyses supported the robustness of these findings. Publication bias and risk of bias downgraded the certainty of evidence to low for PA and moderate for body metrics. These results suggest standalone DBCIs can promote PA and weight management, but further high-quality trials and tailored strategies are needed based on health status.
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- Authors
- Lee, S.-A., & Park, J.-H.
- Affiliations
- Soonchunhyang University (KR)
- Corresponding author
- Park, Jin-Hyuck
- Venue
- npj Digital Medicine
- Published
- 2025-07-14
- Volume
- 8
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 436-436
- ISSN
- 2398-6352 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC12259960
- OpenAlex
- W4412385045
- Cited by
- 22
- References
- 7
- Citations by year
- 2026: 21 · 2025: 1
- FWCI
- 3.59
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- npj Digital Medicine (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc-nd)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Funders
- National Research Foundation of Korea (2021R1I1A3041487)
- Soonchunhyang University Research Fund
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Mobile Health and mHealth Applications
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Physical Activity and Health
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Digital Mental Health Interventions
- Keywords
- digital behaviour change interventions, physical activity, weight management, physical inactivity, adults, health status, digital health interventions
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