From our 20 focus groups, differences were observed across three main population groups in how social media was used to inform behaviours related to physical activity, diet and/or quality of life. The three population groups are represented in the following case study videos:
Lauren’s Story
This video of 'Lauren' explains how adults who had low physical activity levels prior to the COVID-19 lockdown used social media to improve their physical and mental health. The ease of completing online workouts and cooking classes at home and with the family, coupled with the perceived improvements to overall quality of life, re-enforced the use of social media for physical activity and diet information.
Charlie’s Story
This video of 'Charlie' explains how adults who had high physical activity levels prior to the lockdown used social media as a substitute/add-on for social contact related to physical activity/sport (i.e. groups, networks, teams, and clubs). These adults rarely turned to social media for health-related information to inform their physical activity and diet behaviours.
Jean’s Story
This video of 'Jean' explains how adults who were self-isolating due to COVID-19 restrictions, physical isolation was prominent and these adults turned to social media to fill a void and help them maintain physical activity behaviours and social relationships. However, social media was not a resource for all adults self-isolating, and was approached critically in relation to diet and issues of privacy and misinformation.