Projects per year
Abstract
Background: Heart rate variability biofeedback (HRVB) is an established intervention for increasing heart rate variability (HRV) in the clinical context. Using this technique, participants become aware of their HRV through real-time feedback and can self-regulate it. Objective: The aim of this study was 2-fold: first, to develop a serious game that applies the HRVB technique to teach participants to self-regulate HRV and, second, to test the app with participants in a pilot study. Methods: An HRVB app called the FitLab Game was developed for this study. To play the game, users must move the main character up and down the screen, avoiding collisions with obstacles. The wavelength that users must follow to avoid these obstacles is based on the user’s basal heart rate and changes in instantaneous heart rate. To test the FitLab Game, a total of 16 participants (mean age 23, SD 0.69 years) were divided into a control group (n=8) and an experimental group (n=8). A 2 × 2 factorial design was used in each session. Participants in the experimental condition were trained in breathing techniques. Results: Changes in the frequency and time domain parameters of HRV and the game’s performance features were evaluated. Significant changes in the average RR intervals and root mean square of differences between adjacent RR intervals (RMSSD) were found between the groups (P=.02 and P=.04, respectively). Regarding performance, both groups showed a tendency to increase the evaluated outcomes from baseline to the test condition. Conclusions: The results may indicate that playing different levels leads to an improvement in the game’s final score by repeated training. The tendency of changes in HRV may reflect a higher activation of the mental system of attention and control in the experimental group versus the control group. In this context, learning simple, voluntary strategies through a serious game can aid the improvement of self-control and arousal management. The FitLab Game appears to be a promising serious game owing to its ease of use, high engagement, and enjoyability provided by the instantaneous feedback.
Original language | English |
---|---|
Pages (from-to) | 1-17 |
Number of pages | 17 |
Journal | JMIR Serious Games |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 24 Aug 2023 |
Fingerprint
Dive into the research topics of 'A Serious Game to Self-Regulate Heart Rate Variability as a Technique to Manage Arousal Level Through Cardiorespiratory Biofeedback: Development and Pilot Evaluation Study'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.Projects
- 1 Active
-
EMA-BASED STRATEGIES TO IMPROVE EFFORT RECOVERY AND WELLBEING IN ATHLETES AND GENERAL POPULATION USING MHEALTH TECHNOLOGY.
Capdevila, L. (Principal Investigator), Parrado Romero, E. (Principal Investigator 2), Alsina Rodríguez, A. (Collaborator), Verdaguer Gonzalez, A. (Collaborator), Blanco Alcantara, E. (Collaborator), CLOS BATET, S. (Collaborator), FUSTER COLL, J. (Collaborator), Rodas Font, G. (Investigator), MERAYO GARCIA, A. (Investigator) & Pons, T. C. (Investigator)
1/06/20 → 31/12/24
Project: Research Projects and Other Grants