Title
Weight loss support seeking on twitter: the impact of weight on follow back rates and interactions
UMMS Affiliation
Department of Medicine, Division of Preventative and Behavioral Medicine; Department of Quantitative Health Sciences; Department of Psychiatry; Department of Emergency Medicine
Publication Date
2017-3
Document Type
Article
Disciplines
Behavior and Behavior Mechanisms | Health Communication | Health Information Technology | Mental and Social Health | Psychiatry | Psychiatry and Psychology | Social Media | Social Psychology and Interaction | Translational Medical Research
Abstract
People seek weight loss support on online social networks, but little is known about how to build a supportive community. We created four Twitter accounts portraying women interested in weight loss (two obese, two normal weight/overweight) and followed health care professional and peer accounts for 2-5 weeks. We examined follow back rates, interactions, and organic follows from professionals and peers by weight status. Follow back rates did not differ by weight status when following professionals (6.8 % normal weight/overweight vs 11.0 % for obese; p = 0.4167) or peers (6.7 % for normal weight/overweight vs 10.8 % for obese; p = 0.1548). Number of interactions and organic followers also did not differ by weight status. Peers interacted with study accounts significantly more than professionals (p = 0.0138), but interactions were infrequent. Women seeking weight loss support on Twitter may need to be present for more than 5 weeks to build an interactive weight loss community.
Keywords
UMCCTS funding, Obesity, Peer-to-peer healthcare, Social media, Twitter
DOI of Published Version
10.1007/s13142-016-0429-1
Source
Transl Behav Med. 2017 Mar;7(1):84-91. doi: 10.1007/s13142-016-0429-1. Link to article on publisher's site
Journal/Book/Conference Title
Translational behavioral medicine
Related Resources
PubMed ID
27443643
Repository Citation
May CN, Waring ME, Rodrigues S, Oleski JL, Olendzki E, Evans MM, Carey J, Pagoto SL. (2017). Weight loss support seeking on twitter: the impact of weight on follow back rates and interactions. Psychiatry Publications. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13142-016-0429-1. Retrieved from https://escholarship.umassmed.edu/psych_pp/751