A Social Comparison Intervention to Enhance Weight Loss in Obese Individuals

描述（由申请人提供）：本国家研究服务奖（F32）的目标是培养Tricia Leahey成为一名独立的科学家，研究治疗肥胖的创新行为方法。通过教学和直接指导相结合的培训经验，该培训计划将为她提供以下领域的技能和知识：流行病学，健康后果以及肥胖的评估，治疗和预防；肥胖临床研究的方法学、统计学和伦理学；以及社会比较过程对体重控制的影响。在整个颁奖过程中，Tricia Leahey将与她的导师Rena Wing博士密切合作。布朗大学Miriam医院/Warren Alpert医学院的资源，加上她导师的专业知识，将为Tricia Leahey提供理想的环境，以实现她的长期目标。肥胖是一个主要的公共健康问题。团体行为减肥计划是中度超重和肥胖个体的治疗选择。虽然这些干预措施以小组形式进行，并且已知社会因素会影响此类计划中的减肥，但从未有人研究过小组成员之间的人际互动对减肥的影响。健康促进干预措施已经确定，比较群体成员之间的进展可以预测健康行为的结果和维持；然而，从来没有人研究过在行为减肥干预中群体成员之间的社会比较的影响。此外，没有人试图修改比较过程来提高干预效果。因此，本应用程序的目的是：(1)确定预测群体行为减肥计划中体重减轻的社会比较过程；(2)使用从研究1中获得的信息，开发社会比较减肥干预措施，并实施随机对照试验来测试该干预措施。提出了两项研究。研究一将是一个群体标准行为减肥项目，其中社会比较过程将被测量并用于预测减肥。研究II将是一项随机临床试验，参与者将被分配接受6个月的标准行为减肥计划或标准行为治疗加社会比较干预。本研究将确定社会比较干预是否可以有效地增加研究1中确定的预测体重减轻的社会比较过程。本研究的长期目标是通过促进与体重控制相关的社会比较过程来加强群体行为减肥和减肥维持计划。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The goal of this National Research Service Award (F32) is to prepare Tricia Leahey to become an independent scientist studying innovative behavioral approaches for the treatment of obesity. Through a combination of didactic and direct mentored training experiences, this training plan will provide her with skills and knowledge in the following areas: the epidemiology, health consequences, and assessment, treatment and prevention of obesity; the methodology, statistics, and ethics of clinical research in obesity; and the effects of social comparison processes on weight control. Tricia Leahey will work closely with her mentor, Dr. Rena Wing, throughout the course of the award. The resources at The Miriam Hospital/Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University combined with the expertise of her mentor will provide Tricia Leahey with the ideal environment to achieve her long-term goals. Obesity is a major public health problem. Group behavioral weight loss programs are the treatment of choice for moderately overweight and obese individuals. While these interventions are delivered in group format, and social factors are known to influence weight loss in such programs, no one has ever examined the effects of interpersonal interactions among group members on weight loss. Health promotion interventions have identified that comparison of progress amongst group members predicts outcome and maintenance of health behavior; however, no one has ever examined the effects of social comparisons among group members in a behavioral weight loss intervention. Furthermore, no one has ever tried to modify the comparison process to enhance intervention outcome. As such, the aims of this application are to (1) identify social comparison processes that predict weight loss in a group behavioral weight loss program and (2) using the information obtained from Study I, develop a social comparison weight loss intervention and implement a randomized controlled trial to test this intervention. Two studies are proposed. Study I will be a group standard behavioral weight loss program in which social comparison processes will be measured and used to predict weight loss. Study II will be a randomized clinical trial in which participants will be assigned to receive 6 months of a standard behavioral weight loss program or a standard behavioral treatment plus social comparison intervention. This study will determine whether the social comparison intervention can effectively increase social comparisons processes identified to predict weight loss in Study I. The long term goal of this research is to enhance group behavioral weight loss and weight loss maintenance programs by promoting social comparison processes associated with weight control.