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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2021 Jan 1.
Published in final edited form as: Am J Prev Med. 2019 Nov 21;58(1):142–151. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2019.08.014

Table 1.

Efficacy of TMIs Based on Intervention Typea

Intervention type Number
of
studies		 One-arm studies Controlled studiesb
Number
of
studies		 Number of
studies with
significantc
improvements
in activity		 Median
effect size
(Cohen’s
d)d 		Number
of
studies		 Number of
studies with
significantly
greater
improvements
in activity
than controls		 Median
effect size
(Cohen’s
d)d
Text messages alonee 11 5 2 0.54 6 2 0.26
TMIs with minimal additional componentsf 9 2 1 0.61 7 3 0.01
Text messages with online websites and forumsg 4 0 N/A N/A 4 1 0.25
Text messages with selfmonitoringh 16 3 3 1.31 13 7 0.43
Text messages with phone-based componenti 4 1 1 0.41 3 1 0.05
Text messages with in-person counseling sessionj 9 1 0 0.06 8 3 −0.05
Text messages with face-to-face componentk 6 0 N/A N/A 6 3 0.56
a

Categories are exclusive with increasing intensity of the intervention with each category.

b

Controlled studies category includes studies only with a control arm without a one-way text message intervention with physical activity content.

c

Includes studies with significant improvements in at least one domain of physical activity, from baseline to post-intervention.

d

Calculated only for studies that provided sufficient data (i.e., pre- and post-intervention means and SDs for one-arm trials; post-intervention means and SDs for RCTs).

e

Interventions that are solely comprised of text messages; no additional components.

f

Interventions with minimal additional components (e.g., texts and 1–2 phone calls, educational materials, e-mails).

g

Interventions include text messages and online resources such as apps, informational websites, or social forums.

h

Interventions include text messages and a self-monitoring device, such as a Fitbit or smartphone app or self-monitoring intervention.

i

Interventions include text messages and multiple phone calls as part of intervention.

j

Interventions include text messages with an in-person counseling session.

k

Interventions include text messages as an adjunct to rigorous, multicomponent programs including multiple in-person visits.

TMI, text message intervention; N/A, not applicable.