Small sustainable monetary donation-based incentives to promote physical activity: A randomized controlled trial.

To pilot test two low-cost and thus financially sustainable incentive programs to promote physical activity (PA) among low-active adults in a community setting. In a three-arm randomized controlled trial the effects of small monetary incentives (cash incentives $1/day; Quantile regression models showed promising effects of treatment allocation on the primary outcome (attendance) adjusted for age and employment. There was a difference between cash incentives and control conditions such that median attendance in the cash incentives condition was 19.24 visits more over 12 months ( These promising findings provide early support for small monetary incentives and charitable donations for promoting PA in community settings. Further research on the efficacy of using financially sustainable incentive programs, including charitable donations, for PA through community organizations (e.g., YMCAs) seems warranted. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).