Facilitating Weight Management among Men in Virtual Health Communities: Examining Health and Community Outcomes

Being overweight plagues half of the world’s population, suggesting there is a need for solutions, such as virtual health communities (VHCs) constructed to benefit users and the community. We examined participant behavior in a VHC for men focused on weight management and compared their weight loss through an analysis of covariance to identify mechanisms that lead to positive health outcomes and increased engagement. Participants contributed to the VHC via self-monitoring mechanisms, and we found that men engaging in self-monitoring which is individually-focused and structured are more likely to lose weight but also more transient than those engaging in unstructured self-monitoring. The reverse was found for men engaging in structured self-monitoring in a group setting, creating an interesting paradox. These results provide foundations for practical suggestions for VHCs.