The Feasibility of Incentivizing Participation in an Online Social Network Weight Loss Program

Pagoto, Sherry L.; Waring, Molly E.; Olendzki, Effie; Oleski, Jessica L.; May, Christine N.; Evans, Martinus M.

doi:10.24251/hicss.2017.457

Cited by 18 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 29 publications

(39 reference statements)

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“…In our previous work, higher frequency of participant "likes," the lowest effort form of engagement, was associated with greater weight loss. [3] However, higher frequencies of participant posts and replies, which require more effort than simply hitting a "like" button, were not associated with weight loss outcomes. Frequency of posts and replies may be less important than the type and volume of content produced by participants.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 91%

“…Participants were recruited from the local community around Worcester, MA as described elsewhere. [3] Inclusion criteria included smartphone users, currently using Facebook, interested in losing weight, and a body mass index (BMI) of 25-45 kg/m 2 . Participants were excluded if they had diabetes, were unable to attend assessment visits, had participated in any of our previous weight loss studies, were taking exclusionary medication, had bariatric surgery, had a medical condition that limits physical activity or diet, had no primary care provider, were currently breastfeeding or pregnant, had no scale at home, were in another weight loss program, or did not speak English.…”

Section: Recruitment and Screening Proceduresmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We previously reported the main results of this study. [3] Because no differences in weight loss, original posts, or replies were observed between the two treatment conditions, we combined conditions for the present study. We also excluded the 3 participants who received financial incentives for engagement, resulting in an analytic sample of 53 participants.…”

Section: Recruitment and Screening Proceduresmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Recent studies show promise for weight loss interventions delivered via social media platforms (e.g., Facebook). [1][2][3] Several such studies have reported that engagement, defined as how often a participant reacts and contributes via "likes," comments, and posts, is associated with greater weight loss. [3][4][5][6][7] Less is known about whether the specific type of content produced by participants is associated with weight loss.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[1][2][3] Several such studies have reported that engagement, defined as how often a participant reacts and contributes via "likes," comments, and posts, is associated with greater weight loss. [3][4][5][6][7] Less is known about whether the specific type of content produced by participants is associated with weight loss. [8] Eliciting participant engagement may be more difficult in social mediadelivered interventions relative to clinic-based programs given that online communication can be accompanied by privacy concerns, discomfort with comments producing a digital footprint, [9] and lack of ability to leverage nonverbal conversational cues such as eye contact.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

What Type of Engagement Predicts Success in a Facebook Weight Loss Group?

Pagoto

Waring

Jake‐Schoffman

et al. 2018

Proceedings of the 51st Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences

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Studies of social media-delivered behavioral interventions generally reveal that greater engagement is associated with better outcomes. Little is known about whether the type of engagement, volume of content posted, or timing of engagement matters. In the present study, we analyzed whether the content, volume, and timing of participant posts in a Facebook weight loss intervention were associated with weight loss. Findings revealed that reporting a healthy choice, reporting a challenge, and acknowledging other's posts were the most common types of post. Frequency and volume of posts that reported a healthy choice, asked for help, made a plan, responded to weigh ins, acknowledged others, or expressed negative sentiment predicted weight loss, but those that reported a challenge, shared information, expressed support or said something irrelevant did not. Engagement declined by 50% in the second half of the intervention. Recommendations are made for future research.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 91%

Section: Recruitment and Screening Proceduresmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Recruitment and Screening Proceduresmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

What Type of Engagement Predicts Success in a Facebook Weight Loss Group?

Pagoto

Waring

Jake‐Schoffman

et al. 2018

Proceedings of the 51st Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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Engaging primary care patients with existing online tools for weight loss: A pilot trial

McVay

Cooper

Donahue

et al. 2022

Obesity Science & Practice

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Objective: Free online tools show potential for promoting weight loss at a low cost, but there is limited evidence about how to effectively engage patients with them. To address this, a low-dose, flexible intervention was developed that aims to enhance weight-related discussions with primary care providers (PCPs) and engage patients with an organic (i.e., not researcher-created) weight loss-focused social media community and online self-monitoring tool. Feasibility and acceptability of the intervention was evaluated in a single-arm, 12-week pilot.Methods: PCPs were recruited at two clinics, then PCP's patients with upcoming appointments were identified and recruited. Patients received an interactive online kickoff before their scheduled primary care appointment, then 8 follow-up messages over 12 weeks via email or their electronic health record patient portal. Patients completed assessments at baseline, post-appointment, and week 12. Primary care providers and patients completed semi-structured interviews.Results: All PCPs approached enrolled (n = 6); patient recruitment was on track to meet the study goal prior to COVID-19 restrictions, and n = 27 patients enrolled.Patient satisfaction with the pre-appointment kickoff was high. Twenty-four patients reported discussing weight-related topics at their primary care appointment and all were satisfied with the discussion. Twenty-two patients completed 12-week assessments. Of these, 15 reported engaging with the self-monitoring tool and 9 with the social media community. Patient interviews revealed reasons for low social media community engagement, including perceived lack of fit. On average, patients with available data (n = 21) lost 2.4 � 4.1% of baseline weight, and 28.6% of these patients lost ≥3% of baseline weight. Primary care providers reported high intervention satisfaction. Conclusions:The intervention and trial design show potential, although additional strategies are needed to promote tool engagement.This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited and is not used for commercial purposes.

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Social Media and Obesity in Adults: a Review of Recent Research and Future Directions

et al. 2018

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Online patient communities for weight loss abound but may include misinformation. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses suggest that social media-delivered lifestyle interventions modestly impact weight, yet how social media was used and participant engagement varies widely. The rapidly changing social media landscape poses challenges for patients, clinicians, and researchers. Research is needed on how patients can establish supportive communities for weight loss and the role of clinicians in these communities. Emerging research on meaningful engagement in, and the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of, social media-delivered lifestyle interventions should provide insights into how to leverage social media to address the obesity epidemic.

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The Feasibility of Incentivizing Participation in an Online Social Network Weight Loss Program

Abstract: Abstract

Cited by 18 publications

References 29 publications

What Type of Engagement Predicts Success in a Facebook Weight Loss Group?

What Type of Engagement Predicts Success in a Facebook Weight Loss Group?

Engaging primary care patients with existing online tools for weight loss: A pilot trial

Social Media and Obesity in Adults: a Review of Recent Research and Future Directions

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