Behavioral Economic Attributes of Recreation

Risk for developing and dying from heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke, and other cardiometabolic conditions is strongly influenced by behavioral risk factors, including poor diet, physical inactivity, and tobacco and alcohol abuse. Behavioral economic models predict engagement in these behaviors as a function of their subjective value, ability to provide immediate gratification, and availability of competing alternatives. A key implication of the behavioral economic model is that increasing the accessibility of compelling alternative sources of reinforcement may displace engagement in unhealthy behaviors. Developing interventions that leverage these insights requires both a clear understanding of the characteristics of the "reward landscape" of U.S. adults, and the impact of altering the reward landscape on behavioral economic processes and health behavior.

This pilot study uses a trial within a cohort (TwiC) design to pursue these objectives. A representative sample of adults (N=120) will be enrolled into an observational cohort. Cardiometabolic health will be assessed and quantified based on the Life's Essential 8 (LE8) scoring system,4 which includes 4 behavioral (physical activity, diet quality, sleep, tobacco use) and 4 biomedical (non-HDL cholesterol, glucose, weight status, and blood pressure) factors. Structured home audit tools and an ecological momentary assessment (EMA) protocol will be used to measure environmental access to, demand for, and engagement in various rewarding activities, including different categories of recreational activity, electronic entertainment, social activities, and consumable rewards including food, tobacco products, and alcohol. The inter-relationships between different types of rewarding behaviors as substitutes or complements, and their links with cardiometabolic health, will be examined overall and with stratification by socioeconomic status.

Following completion of the first assessment, a subset of participants will be selected for randomization to a recreation-focused intervention or continued observation within the cohort based on their baseline status and protocol adherence. In TwiC designs, the "control" group simply continues to complete observational assessments within the cohort and is not notified that an intervention is ongoing. The BEAR "intervention" group will be approached for consent to participate in a 6-month behavioral economic intervention in which recreational activities are promoted as a strategy to displace cardiometabolic risk behaviors. The scientific aims of the randomized trial component of the study include examining change in LE8 scores, demand for various rewarding activities, discounting rates, and health behaviors. BEAR will also address several feasibility aims, including demonstrating the ability to measure and categorize access to rewarding activities, document recreation-related expenditures by participants, and estimate intervention uptake and acceptability.