Social influence and obesity.
OBJECTIVE
To review a selection of research published in the last 12 months on the role of social influence in the obesity epidemic.


RESULTS
Recent papers add evidence to previous work linking social network structures and obesity. Social norms, both eating norms and body image norms, are identified as one major source of social influence through networks. Social capital and social stress are additional types of social influence.


CONCLUSIONS
There is increasing evidence that social influence and social network structures are significant factors in obesity. Deeper understanding of the mechanisms of action and dynamics of social influence, and its link with other factors involved in the obesity epidemic, is an important goal for further research.
Hammond
Ross A
RA
The Brookings Institution, Washington, District of Columbia 20036, USA. rhammond@brookings.edu
D000818:Animals; D001828:Body Image; D004435:Eating / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology / Q000523:psychology; D012927:Social Control, Informal; D012931:Social Environment; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000150:complications