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Objective: Fitness trackers are appealing in public health intervention programmes aimed at promoting physical activity, but it is unclear whether tracker use leads to health behaviour change in soldiers. This programme evaluation investigated the effects of fitness tracker usage on goal-setting, self-monitoring and physical activity behaviours in soldiers participating in a 6-month pilot health promotion programme focused on improving sleep, activity and nutrition behaviours. Design: Participants in this programme (n = 4,418) were assigned to a health education, an education plus fitness tracker or a comparison (i.e. no intervention) condition. Data were collected at baseline, 3 and 6 months. Setting: Soldiers in five brigades participated in one of the three conditions, with health education integrated into daily operations. Method: Participants in the health education and education plus fitness tracker conditions were exposed to materials distributed via health educators and through leader interaction. Participants in the education plus fitness tracker condition were also assigned a fitness tracker for use. Results: Self-monitoring increased in all conditions over time; however, there was a significant interaction of group by time, such that individuals in the fitness tracker condition reported significantly greater increases in self-monitoring over time, compared with the other groups. Conversely, self-reported physical activity decreased in all conditions over time, with no significant interaction, indicating no effect of group membership. Conclusion: Although fitness trackers are popular in the health and fitness industry, they may have limited utility as a public health intervention aimed at increasing physical activity in soldiers participating in this programme.

Low retention in the child care workforce is a persistent challenge that has been associated with negative outcomes for children, staff, and centers. This article reviews the empirical literature, identifying common correlates or predictors of retention for child care workers. Searches were conducted using several databases, and articles that presented quantitative or qualitative data on retention for center-based child care workers in the United States were reviewed in detail. Seven themes emerged as potential predictors of retention: wages and benefits, job satisfaction, organizational characteristics, alternative employment opportunities, demographic characteristics, job characteristics, and education and training. Although some of the findings were mixed, increased retention was generally associated with the following: working in a publicly operated or nonprofit center that meets accreditation or policy standards, being older, maintaining a higher-level position, having more tenure and experience, receiving higher wages, and reporting higher job satisfaction. Based on these studies, child care centers should seek to increase pay, recruit staff with more experience, and aim to improve job satisfaction among staff to help increase retention. In addition, government-funded professional development incentive programs may help child care centers meet the goals of a high-quality, educated, and stable workforce.

The present study aimed to describe patterns of risk and protective factors affecting U.S. Army families and their association with mental health diagnoses among military‐connected children. Wartime military service is associated with increased adverse outcomes for military‐connected youth, but few studies have explored the impact of concurrent risk and access to protective factors. Using big data methods to link existing datasets, protective factors (e.g., marital and family functioning) were drawn from a voluntary survey completed by 1,630 US Army spouses. Risk factors (e.g., parent mental health, family moves, deployment) were drawn from Department of Defense (DoD) archival data. Rates of mental health diagnoses among youth were derived from DoD healthcare records. Using the three‐step method of latent profile analysis, five profiles emerged with variability across risk and protective factors. The largest group (40% of the sample) had considerable protective factors and limited risk exposure. Statistically significant differences in the prevalence of mental health diagnoses among military‐connected youth were observed across profiles (χ2 = 30.067, df = 4, p <.001), with the highest rates (31.1% and 30.5%) observed in the two profiles with the lowest protective factors. Findings suggest most military families are faring well and highlight the importance of a thorough assessment that evaluates both the stressors military families face and the strengths they possess. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]