In a multi-wave observational evaluation of a community exergaming program for older adults, positive mental health, intrinsic motivation, and habit strength were higher at post-unsupervised follow-up than at baseline, and intrinsic motivation remained elevated at a later selected-center follow-up, though findings represent observed longitudinal trajectories rather than causal evidence of program effectiveness.
Key Findings
Results
Positive mental health increased significantly from baseline to immediately after the 8-week supervised training phase.
Mean positive mental health increased from 55.19 (SD 9.79) at baseline to 57.59 (SD 8.70) at T1.
Effect size was small (Cohen dz=0.28; P<.001).
In adjusted mixed models, positive mental health was higher immediately after supervised training (β=4.140, 95% CI 2.169–6.111; P<.001) and also higher at T2 after the unsupervised phase (β=7.390, 95% CI 5.370–9.410; P<.001) compared to baseline.
Study involved 280 older adults (mean age 72.54, SD 6.15 years; 77.1% female) recruited from 14 senior activity or active aging centers in Singapore.
Results
Intrinsic motivation increased significantly from baseline to immediately post-training and remained elevated through the unsupervised free-play phase and a later follow-up.
Mean intrinsic motivation increased from 5.94 (SD 1.00) at baseline to 6.29 (SD 0.81) at T1 (Cohen dz=0.40; P<.001).
In adjusted mixed models, intrinsic motivation remained higher at T2 (β=0.397, 95% CI 0.156–0.638; P=.001) and T3 (β=0.305, 95% CI 0.009–0.601; P=.04) compared to baseline.
T3 follow-up was conducted only in selected centers (6 of 14), limiting generalizability of that estimate.
These findings represent observed longitudinal trajectories rather than causal evidence given the absence of a control group.
Results
Habit strength increased significantly from baseline to immediately post-training and remained higher after the unsupervised free-play phase.
Mean habit strength increased from 3.34 (SD 1.11) at baseline to 3.81 (SD 0.84) at T1 (Cohen dz=0.42; P<.001).
In adjusted mixed models, habit strength remained higher at T2 than at baseline (β=0.362, 95% CI 0.113–0.611; P=.005).
The T2 assessment occurred after a 4-week unsupervised free-play phase that followed the 8-week supervised training phase.
Attrition increased over time, and the study lacked a control group, so causal conclusions cannot be drawn.
Results
Among COM-B domains, only opportunity was associated with greater immediate post-training physical activity improvement, with no sustained effect at T2.
The time × opportunity interaction was statistically significant at T1 (β=26.464, 95% CI 3.191–49.737; P=.03).
Capability and motivation composites were not significantly associated with physical activity trajectories.
There was no evidence of a sustained time × opportunity interaction at T2.
Opportunity-related supports were described as including access, reminders, routines, staff facilitation, and peer participation.
These analyses were described as exploratory.
Methods
The study was a multi-wave observational evaluation without a control group, and attrition increased across the four assessment waves.
Assessments were conducted at baseline (T0), immediately after 8-week supervised training (T1), after a 4-week unsupervised free-play phase (T2), and at a later follow-up (T3) in 6 of 14 centers.
280 older adults were recruited from 14 senior activity centers or active aging centers in Singapore, evaluated from October 2025 to January 2026.
Immediate within-person changes were examined using 2-tailed paired t tests; maintenance-related trajectories used adjusted linear mixed-effects models.
The absence of a control group and increasing attrition over time means findings represent observed longitudinal trajectories rather than causal evidence of program effectiveness.
The program evaluated was the International Singapore Intergenerational National Games, a community-delivered exergaming program.
What This Means
This research followed 280 older adults in Singapore (average age 73, about 77% female) who participated in a community-based exergaming program — video games that require physical movement — run at senior activity centers. The study measured several outcomes including mental well-being, internal motivation to exercise, exercise habit formation, and physical activity levels at four time points: before the program, right after an 8-week supervised phase, after a subsequent 4-week period when participants could play on their own without supervision, and at a later check-in at some centers. The researchers found that mental well-being, intrinsic motivation, and habit strength all improved during the supervised phase, and these improvements were still detectable after the unsupervised free-play period. Intrinsic motivation was also still elevated at the latest follow-up measured at a subset of centers.
The study also explored which factors from a behavioral framework (capability, opportunity, and motivation) predicted physical activity gains. Only 'opportunity' — meaning things like access to equipment, reminders, social peers, and staff support — was linked to greater physical activity improvement right after training, though this association did not persist into the unsupervised phase. This suggests that environmental and social supports may matter most during the transition from guided to independent exercise.
This research suggests that community exergaming programs may help older adults build motivation and exercise habits that persist even after formal supervision ends, though the study had important limitations: there was no comparison group, and more participants dropped out over time, making it impossible to draw firm causal conclusions. The findings point to the potential value of maintaining social and logistical supports — such as peer participation and staff availability — when transitioning older adults from structured to self-directed physical activity programs.
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Liu Y, Chia B, Koh H, Nguyen Q, Jin J, Tan K, et al.. (2026). Community Exergaming and Maintenance-Related Outcomes in Older Adults: Multi-Wave Observational Evaluation.. JMIR aging. https://doi.org/10.2196/100007