title: Identifying the effects of social media on health behavior: Data from a large-scale online experiment.
abstract: Sedentary lifestyle is an escalating epidemic. Little is known about whether or how social media can be used to design a cost-effective solution for sedentary lifestyle. In this article we describe the data from a randomized controlled trial (RCT) that evaluated two prominent strategies for conducting exercise interventions using elements of social media: motivational media campaigns and online peer networks. The data file includes 217 participants' basic demographic information, number of exercise class enrollments over 13 weeks, and self-reported number of days for exercise activities in the previous 7 days at baseline. Among the 217, 164 also have data on self-reported number of days for exercise activities at the post-program. Data are supplied with this article. The interpretation of these data can be found in the research article published by the authors in Preventive Medicine Reports in 2015 [1].
authors.affiliation: University of Pennsylvania, Annenberg School for Communication, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Jingwen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: University of Pennsylvania, Annenberg School for Communication, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Devon
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Brackbill
authors.affiliation: University of Pennsylvania, Annenberg School for Communication, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Sijia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: University of Pennsylvania, Annenberg School for Communication, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Damon
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Centola