Trial reportThe international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity2014
A randomized trial comparing weight loss treatment delivered in large versus small groups.
Trial report in The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 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
11 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Electronic Health Interventions and Cervical Cancer Screening: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Journal of medical Internet research · 2024Pooled it
- Does weight management research for adults with severe obesity represent them? Analysis of systematic review data.BMJ open · 2022Pooled it
- Wellness Achieved Through Changing Habits: A Randomized Controlled Trial of an Acceptance-Based Intervention for Adolescent Girls With Overweight or Obesity.Childhood obesity (Print) · 2023Trial
- Randomized trial comparing group size of periodic in-person sessions in a remotely delivered weight loss intervention.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2017Trial
- Optimizing an extended care intervention to promote weight loss maintenance: Protocol for the OPT-X multiphase optimization strategy factorial trial.Contemporary clinical trials · 2026Article
- Preferences and responses for physical activity partnerships among women in midlife with elevated risk for cardiovascular disease: a digital, mixed methods approach.Psychology & health · 2025Article
- A Facebook-Delivered Weight Loss Intervention Using Open Enrollment: Randomized Pilot Feasibility Trial.JMIR formative research · 2022Article
- The EVO study protocol for a randomized controlled evaluation trial of an optimized weight management intervention.Contemporary clinical trials · 2022Article
- Factors Associated with Achievement of Clinically Significant Weight Loss by Women in a National Nonprofit Weight Loss Program.Journal of women's health (2002) · 2017Article
- A qualitative evaluation of a group phone-based weight loss intervention for rural breast cancer survivors: Themes and mechanisms of success.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2016Article
- Weight loss intervention adherence and factors promoting adherence: a meta-analysis.Patient preference and adherence · 2016Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundBehavioral interventions for obesity are commonly delivered in groups, although the effect of group size on weight loss has not been empirically evaluated. This behavioral weight loss trial compared the 6- and 12-month weight changes associated with interventions delivered in a large group (LG) or small groups (SG).
methodsObese adults (N = 66; mean age = 50 years; mean BMI = 36.5 kg/m2; 47% African American; 86% women) recruited from a health maintenance organization were randomly assigned to: (1) LG treatment (30 members/group), or (2) SG treatment (12 members/group). Conditions were comparable in frequency and duration of treatment, which included 24 weekly group sessions (months 1-6) followed by six monthly extended care contacts (months 7-12). A mixed effects model with unstructured covariance matrix was applied to analyze the primary outcome of weight change while accounting for baseline weight and dependence among participants' measurements over time.
resultsSG participants lost significantly more weight than LG participants at Month 6 (-6.5 vs. -3.2 kg; p = 0.03) and Month 12 (-7.0 vs. -1.7 kg; p < 0.002). SG participants reported better treatment engagement and self-monitoring adherence at Months 6 and 12, ps < 0.04, with adherence fully mediating the relationship between group size and weight loss.
conclusionsReceiving obesity treatment in smaller groups may promote greater weight loss and weight loss maintenance. This effect may be due to improved adherence facilitated by SG interactions. These novel findings suggest that the perceived efficiency of delivering behavioral weight loss treatment to LGs should be balanced against the potentially better outcomes achieved by a SG approach.
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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.