Weight loss support seeking on twitter: the impact of weight on follow back rates and interactions
A healthcare social media research article published in Translational Behavioral Medicine, July 20, 2016
- Title
- Weight loss support seeking on twitter: the impact of weight on follow back rates and interactions
- Authors (alpha)
- Christine N. May, Effie Olendzki, Jennifer Carey, Jessica L. Oleski, Martinus Evans, Molly E. Waring, Sherry L. Pagoto, Stephanie Rodrigues
- Published
- July 20, 2016
- Journal
- Translational Behavioral Medicine
- Impact Factor
- 2.189
- DOI
- 10.1007/s13142-016-0429-1
- Pubmed
- 27443643
- Altmetric
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.
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Altmetric
The Altmetric Attention Score is based on the attention a research article gets on the internet. Each coloured thread in the circle represents a different type of online attention and the number in the centre is the Altmetric Attention Score. The score is calculated based on two main sources of online attention: social media and mainstream news media.