People with intellectual disabilities (ID) commonly have below average motor competence with mobility limitations, especially in the areas of balance and gait, leaving them at high risk for falls and injuries. There is a need for exercise intervention programs that target the specific motor needs of this population. One successful approach to reduce falls in people with ID is Tai Chi. This project, Online Ezy Tai Chi: A Simplified Program for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities, will utilize Behavioral Skills Training (BST) and target individuals with ID and a Learning Partner (LP: a parent, direct support staff, or foster care provider to achieve our aim of developing and testing the efficacy of simplified 8-form Tai Chi program developed specifically for adults with ID. This Phase I online program enables adults with ID to learn some basic Tai Chi moves at home in a familiar environment with the support of a Learning Partner. In Phase II we will incorporate the complete routine and include additional user- friendly features such as instant replay, an "exercise scheduler" function, video clips showing movement analysis and extended teaching segments. The final unit in Phase 2 will feature "Moving into the Community," with guidelines for identifying and engaging in locally available Tai Chi programs. The primary objective of this project is to develop a Tai Chi program with instructional strategies known to be effective for individuals with ID and a Learning Partner. Phase I has three specific aims: (1) design and develop the first five forms of the 8-Form Tai Chi exercise program; (2) conduct a usability test of the online program with five dyads (n=10) representing typical users to gauge the overall usability and content of the online program; and (3) recruit thirty dyads for a feasibility study of the first five of the 8-form program with a sample of 30 individuals with mild to moderate ID and 30 Learning Partners (n=60). Feasibility will be demonstrated by met recruitment goals, low attrition rate, high log in rate, high system usability, and high satisfaction. We will what we learn in Phase 1 to expand the Phase 2 program to include all eight forms, and additional instructional features to create an easy to learn routine and conduct a randomized controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy of the finished product.
Public Health Relevance Statement: PROJECT NARRATIVE Research on fall prevention in both the general population and the sub- population of individuals with intellectual Disabilities (ID) is highly relevant to public health. Individuals with ID are a sub-population at risk due to poor motor skills coupled with a high frequency of falls resulting in injuries. There is a pressing need to help this group improve their motor skills and reduce their risk of falls. By focusing on individuals with ID, this program brings needed intervention tools for an underserved population.
Project Terms: 21+ years old; Adult Human; adulthood; Adult; Affect; ages; Age; advanced age; elders; geriatric; late life; later life; older adult; older person; senior citizen; Elderly; Communities; E-learning; computer-assisted instruction; computer-based education; computer-based instruction; computer-based learning; computer-based training; digital education; digital learning; eLearning; electronic learning; internet-assisted education; internet-based training; multimedia learning; on-line education; on-line learning; online education; online learning; technology-enhanced learning; virtual learning; web-based instruction; web-based training; Environment; Equilibrium; balance; balance function; Exercise; Exertion; Family; Feasibility Studies; Focus Groups; Gait; Goals; Learning; Manuals; Marketing; Short-Term Memory; Immediate Memory; Shortterm Memory; working memory; Motor Skills; Movement; body movement; Persons; Parents; parent; Public Health; Research; Resources; Research Resources; Risk; Target Populations; Educational process of instructing; Teaching; Teaching Method; instructional practice; instructional strategy; teaching methodology; Testing; Thinking; thoughts; United States; Writing; Gender; Measures; Care Givers; Caregivers; falls; adaptation behavior; adaptive behavior; Adaptive Behaviors; Competence; physical disability; physically disabled; physically handicapped; preventing falls; Fall prevention; Guidelines; injuries; Injury; Clip; improved; Area; sedentary; Phase; Evaluation; Training; Individual; satisfaction; Ethnicity; Ethnic Origin; Comment; Commentary; Editorial Comment; Viewpoint; Published Comment; randomized control trial; Randomized, Controlled Trials; tool; Impaired cognition; Cognitive Disturbance; Cognitive Impairment; Cognitive decline; Cognitive function abnormal; Disturbance in cognition; cognitive dysfunction; cognitive loss; Tai Ji; T'ai Chi; Tai Chi; Tai Chi Chih; Tai Chi Chuan; Tai Ji Quan; Tai Qi; TaiChi; Taiji; Taijiquan; programs; foster care; Frequencies; System; Intellectual functioning disability; Intellectual disability; Intellectual limitation; intellectual and developmental disability; limited intellectual functioning; interest; skills training; technology development; tech development; intervention program; Participant; General Population; General Public; mind/body; Devices; Sampling; response; Intervention; Intervention Strategies; interventional strategy; Provider; fall risk; Address; Adherence; Motor; National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health; NCCAM; NCCIH; National Center for Complementary and Integrative Medicine; Cognitive; Process; Development; developmental; Behavioral; Instruction; cost; under served group; under served individual; under served people; under served population; underserved group; underserved individual; underserved people; Underserved Population; designing; design; determine efficacy; efficacy analysis; efficacy assessment; efficacy determination; efficacy examination; evaluate efficacy; examine efficacy; efficacy evaluation; Population; Coupled; Impairment; user-friendly; usability; prototype; high risk; information processing; evidence base; efficacy testing; cognitive disability; sustained attention; movement analysis; physical activity intervention; exercise intervention; fitness program; exercise program; recruit; care providers; homes; Home; pilot test
