Effectiveness of Social Media-Based Interventions for the Promotion of Physical Activity: Scoping Review
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A global target of the World Health Organization (WHO) is to reduce physical inactivity among all adults and adolescents by approximately fifteen percent by 2030. Social media could have an impact in this effort because of its enormous reach, potentially addressing underserved populations in need for physical activity (PA) interventions. This scoping review provides a broad overview of social media-based interventions and systematically maps the evidence regarding their effectiveness for PA promotion and other health outcomes. Scopus and Medline were searched using the terms “physical activity” and “social media” and the names of key social media platforms. Following the PRISMA guidelines for scoping reviews, abstracts and full texts were screened for eligibility. In total, 12,321 publications were identified and 53 met the inclusion criteria. The use of Facebook was most prevalent in PA interventions, followed by study-specific platforms. More than one third of the studies revealed positive effects regarding the promotion of PA. Additionally, social media-based interventions positively affected other physical dimensions of health (e.g., weight or blood pressure). Results pertaining to feasibility were heterogeneous. Social media seems to be a promising tool for increasing PA at the population level. Future studies should take the abundance of platforms into account and select social media platforms consciously.
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A review of 53 publications reported that social media-based interventions, usually on Facebook, raise physical activity via support, encouragement, and friendly competition among group members.
“A systematic review of 53 publications found studies using interventions through social media, most commonly Facebook, increase PA through support, encouragement, and competitive interactions amongst friends or group members.109”
From The Impact of Physical Activity in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes (2025) · cites this paper as [109]
Social media and mobile applications can effectively provide physical activity support when face-to-face interaction is not possible.
“In-person interactions are not always feasible and studies have shown support through social media and mobile applications are effective alternatives.109,110”
From The Impact of Physical Activity in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes (2025) · cites this paper as [109]
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The Impact of Physical Activity in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes
Bassin, S. R., & Srinath, R. (2025) · American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine · doi:10.1177/15598276231180541 · Cited by 17 · see citing works
- Authors
- Günther, L., Schleberger, S., & Pischke, C. R.
- Affiliations
- Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (DE)
- Corresponding author
- Günther, Liane
- Venue
- International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
- Publisher
- MDPI AG
- Published
- 2021-12-10
- Volume
- 18
- Issue
- 24
- Pages
- 13018
- ISSN
- 1660-4601 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC8702047
- OpenAlex
- W4200225151
- Cited by
- 49
- References
- 65
- Citations by year
- 2026: 15 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 10 · 2023: 10 · 2022: 7
- FWCI
- 0.73
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Health › Social Media in Health Education
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Physical Activity and Health
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Mobile Health and mHealth Applications
- Keywords
- social media interventions, physical activity promotion, physical inactivity, Facebook, health behavior change, weight, blood pressure, feasibility, digital health interventions
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Behavior Therapy, Health Promotion, Humans, Exercise, Social Media
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