Communications of the ACM
Can Social Networks Help You Get Into Shape?
Researchers at the University of Southern California researcher are learning more about the effects of social connections and physical fitness among those who track their health with wearable technology.
Credit: TechCrunch
Researchers at the University of Southern California (USC) are studying whether social networks can help make people healthier.
The researchers monitored more than 44,000 Fitbit users and found those with larger and more active social networks have higher levels of physical activity.
For each additional social connection, participants walked an average of 6.5 more steps, and USC professor Greg Ver Steeg sought to determine whether the correlations observed were causal or related.
The researchers found some evidence for a causal link, but could not rule out all other possible explanations.
Ver Steeg wants to create a mathematical model that rules out homophily as the main reason for the observed correlation.
The team also examined the relationship between social networks and physical activity in terms of chronic conditions, and found increased activity among those with larger social networks was more significant for users with chronic diseases.
From USC News
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