Using participant feedback to improve two selective eating disorder and obesity prevention programs

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Behavioral Science
• Psychology

Background:

• Obesity and eating disorders are significant public health concerns among college students.
• Intervention programs aim to prevent unhealthy weight gain and promote healthy lifestyles.
• Understanding participant feedback is crucial for refining program efficacy.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze qualitative participant feedback from two weight management programs: Healthy Weight and Project Health.
• To identify areas for improvement to enhance the effectiveness of these obesity and eating disorder prevention programs.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative feedback was gathered from 364 college students (72% female) with weight concerns.
• Participants were randomly assigned to either the Healthy Weight or Project Health intervention.
• Feedback focused on program satisfaction, valued components, least valuable aspects, and suggestions for improvement.

Main Results:

• Healthy Weight participants reported higher program satisfaction (p=0.02) compared to Project Health.
• Both groups valued goal setting and the group setting; Project Health participants also valued provided information, while Healthy Weight participants valued accountability.
• Project Health participants found home exercises least valuable; Healthy Weight participants found food/exercise logs least valuable. Both suggested adding interactive activities.

Conclusions:

• Project Health demonstrated stronger weight gain prevention effects, potentially due to dissonance-induction strategies.
• Healthy Weight program's higher satisfaction may stem from its focus, despite Project Health's stronger quantitative outcomes.
• Both interventions can be improved by incorporating more interactive elements like group exercises, social media connection, and icebreakers.