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Obesity in social media: a mixed methods analysis

  • Original Research
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Translational Behavioral Medicine

Abstract

The escalating obesity rate in the USA has made obesity prevention a top public health priority. Recent interventions have tapped into the social media (SM) landscape. To leverage SM in obesity prevention, we must understand user-generated discourse surrounding the topic. This study was conducted to describe SM interactions about weight through a mixed methods analysis. Data were collected across 60 days through SM monitoring services, yielding 2.2 million posts. Data were cleaned and coded through Natural Language Processing (NLP) techniques, yielding popular themes and the most retweeted content. Qualitative analyses of selected posts add insight into the nature of the public dialogue and motivations for participation. Twitter represented the most common channel. Twitter and Facebook were dominated by derogatory and misogynist sentiment, pointing to weight stigmatization, whereas blogs and forums contained more nuanced comments. Other themes included humor, education, and positive sentiment countering weight-based stereotypes. This study documented weight-related attitudes and perceptions. This knowledge will inform public health/obesity prevention practice.

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Acknowledgments

Data collection for this project was enabled through the support of the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities and the National Cancer Institute.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Health Communication and Informatics Research Branch, Behavioral Research Program, Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, 9609 Medical Center Dr. 3E614, Rockville, MD, 20892, USA

    Wen-ying Sylvia Chou PhD, MPH

  2. Health Communication and Informatics Research Branch, Behavioral Research Program, Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, 9609 Medical Center Dr., Rockville, MD, 20892, USA

    Abby Prestin PhD

  3. Department of Linguistics, Georgetown University, 9609 Medical Center Dr. 3E614, Rockville, MD, 20892, USA

    Stephen Kunath MS

Authors
  1. Wen-ying Sylvia Chou PhD, MPH
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  2. Abby Prestin PhD
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  3. Stephen Kunath MS
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Wen-ying Sylvia Chou PhD, MPH.

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Implications

Practice: Public health practitioners and health-care providers must be aware of the nature of authentic online conversations surrounding obesity, including negative sentiment that could drown out health messages as well as positive, health-promoting sentiment, and consider ways to leverage ongoing conversations to counter weight-based stigma.

Policy: Broader efforts can be implemented to curb online weight stigma, by partnering with existing anti-cyberbullying efforts and online “influencers” such as celebrity figures to affect the dialogue over time.

Research: This work offers insights into the lived experience of obesity. It will inform research investigating the efficacy and effectiveness of health promotion and weight control interventions using social media.

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Chou, Wy.S., Prestin, A. & Kunath, S. Obesity in social media: a mixed methods analysis. Behav. Med. Pract. Policy Res. 4, 314–323 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13142-014-0256-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13142-014-0256-1

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