Social support in an Internet weight loss community

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• 作者：Kevin O. Hwang ; Allison J. Ottenbacher ; Angela P. Green ; M. Roseann Cannon-Diehl ; Oneka Richardson ; Elmer V. Bernstam ; Eric J. Thomas
• 刊名：International Journal of Medical Informatics
• 出版年：2010
• 出版时间：January 2010
• 年：2010
• 卷：79
• 期：1
• 页码：5-13
• 全文大小：374 K

文摘

Purpose

To describe social support for weight loss shared by members of a large Internet weight loss community.

Methods

We conducted a mixed-methods study with surveys (n = 193) and interviews (n = 13) of community members along with a content analysis of discussion forum messages (n = 1924 messages). Qualitative data were analyzed for social support themes.

Results

Survey respondents were primarily white (91.4 % ) and female (93.8 % ) with mean age 37.3 years and mean body mass index 30.9. They used forums frequently, with 56.8 % reading messages, 36.1 % replying to messages, and 18.5 % posting messages to start a discussion related to weight loss on a daily or more frequent basis. Major social support themes were encouragement and motivation, mentioned at least once by 87.6 % of survey respondents, followed by information (58.5 % ) and shared experiences (42.5 % ). Subthemes included testimonies, recognition for success, accountability, friendly competition, and humor. Members valued convenience, anonymity, and the non-judgmental interactions as unique characteristics of Internet-mediated support.

Conclusion

This Internet weight loss community plays a prominent role in participants’ weight loss efforts. Social support within Internet weight loss communities merits further evaluation as a weight loss resource for clinicians to recommend to patients. Understanding these communities could improve how health professionals evaluate, build, harness, and manipulate social support for weight loss.