Objective: The purpose of this pilot study was to examine the effect of an online social network used as an adjunct to a behavioral weight loss intervention on participants" perceived social support and perceived self-efficacy using constructs of Social Cognitive Theory as a basis for website development.Methods: 13 adult women (mean age: 43 years of age, range: 25-63 years) participated in a 12-week behavioral weight-loss intervention with the option to access the Transformation Challenge Online Community (TCOC), an internet-based support and informational website. The TCOC was developed using constructs of the Social Cognitive Theory. Data analyzed included online site usage software and pre-and postquestionnaire results. Time spent online, unique visits to the webpage, and pre and postintervention data were analyzed using a mixed methods approach.Results: Average time spent on TCOC was 95.6 minutes over the entire three month intervention (range: 0 -287 minutes). Website usage varied widely ranging from a participant who never accessed the site to another participant who logged on daily and commented a total of 27 times. Perceived self-efficacy to maintain a learned health behavior without the aid of a professional, as well as overall perceived social support were statistically significantly greater post-intervention. Confidence in the TCOC"s ability to aid in making healthy lifestyle changes decreased significantly from pre-to post-intervention while website usage also decreased over time.
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