The Effects of Online Social Supports on Exercise Behavior.

Exercise is demonstrated to be beneficial to both physical and mental wellbeing. The challenge of how to persuade individuals to maintain regular exercise has received attention from multiple disciplines. With the rise of online social networks, a number of studies found positive correlations between online social support and active lifestyle. In this paper, we report findings from a 52 weeks study under the methods of phynomenography to analyze the roles played by friends in social networks and the support in exercise behavior changes related to these relationships. The results show that besides the individual effect from message tailoring and intervention strategies, the interaction ecosystem based on appropriate role playing by leaders, peers and followers can enhance persuasion power. Effective social support for encouraging physical activities should consider the roles played by the target individuals in the environment and provide comfortable role support.