WhatsApp was evaluated as group support tool for a high impact healthy lifestyle intervention, with 11 young professionals. Users valued the WhatsApp group as an attractive social support addition to the existing eTools and personal coaching. Based on preliminary results: 1) the WhatsApp group generated higher participation than most other social media; 2) deploying social media use motives; 3) possibly due to the relatively high 'presence' and 'engagement' attributes of WhatsApp; 4) contributing to healthy behaviours and health advocacy. Peer coaching was confirmed as promising. However, participation declined after the initial weeks. A design lesson was that users wanted more support for community forming. Several improvement suggestions are provided.

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WhatsApp was evaluated as a peer coach group support tool in a healthy lifestyle intervention with 15 young professionals. These individuals were time-constrained professionals, so two design challenges were to create enough attractiveness and quality in the peer group interactions. There were three main health domains: food, physical activity, and mental energy. As a result of the 12 week pilot, there were 127 WhatsApp peer coaching inputs. The variety of inputs was better than in a previous pilot; peer coaching quality improved; plus there was more continuity following the initial two weeks. Community building remained a challenge, especially in the longer run. Two design solutions seemed to work: pre-designed coach-inputs across health domains, plus the instructions for a health advocate from the group, per health domain. Based on the results, the authors hypothesize that user needs in the first five weeks …@en

Within groups that are starting a healthy lifestyle intervention together, there is potential for social e-support, as an addition to individual coaching. However, the support technology should be low-tech, low-threshold and preferably already omnipresent. A WhatsApp group was chosen as support tool, given the large variety of groups normally coached: from elderly, IT-phobic diabetics to highly educated young professionals.
In this explorative pilot study, 11 young professionals volunteered. Despite their time-constrained schedules, 81 user inputs were generated in the first weeks, and the users valued the WhatsApp group as an attractive social support addition to the existing eTools and personal coaching which have a more functional focus on individual progress. Based on preliminary results: a) the WhatsApp group generated higher participation than most other social media, b) deploying social media use motives, c) possibly due to the relatively high ‘presence’ and ‘engagement’ attributes of WhatsApp, and d) contributing to healthy behaviours and health advocacy.@en