Trial reportHealth psychology : official journal of the Division of Health Psychology, American Psychological Association2014
Autonomy support, self-regulation, and weight loss.
Trial report in Health psychology : official journal of the Division of Health Psychology, American Psychological Association, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 50 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
50 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- The effectiveness of social-support-based weight-loss interventions-a systematic review and meta-analysis.International journal of obesity (2005) · 2024Pooled it
- Prevalence of personal weight control attempts in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity · 2017Pooled it
- Motivation, accountability, and outcomes in a randomized controlled trial of internet weight-loss programs in primary care.Journal of health psychology · 2025Trial
- Testing autonomous motivation as a mechanism of anticipated regret intervention techniques for seasonal flu vaccination.Annals of behavioral medicine : a publication of the Society of Behavioral Medicine · 2025Trial
- Autonomy support in a couples weight loss trial: Helping yourself while helping others.Families, systems & health : the journal of collaborative family healthcare · 2022Trial
- Mechanisms of self-persuasion intervention for HPV vaccination: Testing memory and autonomous motivation.Health psychology : official journal of the Division of Health Psychology, American Psychological Association · 2021Trial
- A randomized controlled trial of a theory-based weight-loss program for couples.Health psychology : official journal of the Division of Health Psychology, American Psychological Association · 2020Trial
- How prescriptive support affects weight loss in weight-loss intervention participants and their untreated spouses.Health psychology : official journal of the Division of Health Psychology, American Psychological Association · 2018Trial
- Project TEAMS (Talking about Eating, Activity, and Mutual Support): a randomized controlled trial of a theory-based weight loss program for couples.BMC public health · 2017Trial
- Dyadic Dynamics in a Randomized Weight Loss Intervention.Annals of behavioral medicine : a publication of the Society of Behavioral Medicine · 2016Trial
- Trial
- Randomised controlled feasibility trial of a web-based weight management intervention with nurse support for obese patients in primary care.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2014Trial
- Short and long-term lifestyle coaching approaches used to address diverse participant barriers to weight loss and physical activity adherence.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2014Trial
- Starting, staying and succeeding: motivation, life aspirations and hobbies as possible predictors of progression through a real-world online weight loss program.BMC public health · 2026Article
- An Expansion of Weight Inclusivity to Include Body Autonomy and Harm Reduction: Striving for Health Equity.Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics · 2026Article
- Results of a pilot sequential multiple assignment randomized trial using counseling to augment a digital weight loss program.Obesity science & practice · 2024Article
- Understanding the importance of weight management: a qualitative exploration of lived individual experiences.International journal of qualitative studies on health and well-being · 2024Review
- A machine-learned model for predicting weight loss success using weight change features early in treatment.NPJ digital medicine · 2024Article
- Couples-based health behavior change interventions: A relationship science perspective on the unique opportunities and challenges to improve dyadic health.Comprehensive psychoneuroendocrinology · 2024Article
- Supporting Sustainable Health Behavior Change: The Whole is Greater Than the Sum of Its Parts.Mayo Clinic proceedings. Innovations, quality & outcomes · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveSocial support is believed to contribute to weight loss success, yet the type of support received is rarely assessed. To develop more effective weight loss interventions, examinations of the types of support that are associated with positive outcomes are needed. Self-Determination Theory suggests that support for an individual's autonomy is beneficial and facilitates internalization of autonomous self-regulation. We examined whether autonomy support and directive forms of support were associated with weight loss outcomes in a larger randomized controlled trial.
methodAdults (N = 201; 48.9 ± 10.5 years; 78.1% women) participating in a weight loss trial were assessed at 0, 6, and 18 months. Autonomy support (AS), directive support, and autonomous self-regulation (ASR) were measured at 0 and 6 months and examined in relation to 18-month weight loss outcomes.
resultsBaseline AS and ASR did not predict outcomes; however, AS and ASR at 6 months positively predicted 18-month weight losses (ps < .05), encouragement of healthy eating at 6 months was negatively related to 18-month weight losses (p < .01), and other forms of directive support were not associated with outcomes.
conclusionsAutonomy support predicted better weight loss outcomes while some forms of directive support hindered progress. Weight loss trials are needed to determine whether family members and friends can be trained to provide autonomy support and whether this is more effective than programs targeting more general or directive forms of support.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.