Table 2.
Characteristics of included studies
| Study ID | Country | Focus | Inclusion criteria | N | Mean age | % female | mean BMI | SES | Ethnicity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abolhassani, 2012 31 | Iran | Barriers and facilitators to weight gain and loss | Unsatisfied with current weight, tried to reduce weight at least once. Excl. lack of interest, dialect/language differences, limitations and inability to speak | 11 | NS | NS | NS | Eight employed, no other detail provided | NS |
| Ali, 2010 32 | United Arab Emirates | Weight management behaviours and perceptions of women at increased risk of type 2 diabetes within UAE cultural context | Emirati national women, 18 years old or older, no previous diagnosis of diabetes (except gestational), with one or more of the following: gestational diabetes, abdominal obesity (weight circumference >88 cm) + family history of type 2 diabetes, or prediabetes (fasting plasma glucose or glucose load test) | 75 | 39 | 100 | NS | NS | NS |
| Allan, 1991 33 | USA | Weight management in white women | Normal weight to moderate obesity (40–100% over ideal weight); born in US and living in study area; 18–55 years old; White | 37 | 33.7 | 100 | NS | 57% middle class, 43% working class; all but three is employed. 30% high school grad, 32% some college, 38% college grad | White |
| Barnes, 2007 23 | USA | Weight loss maintenance as it relates to the theory of planned behaviour | African–American women, ≥18, lost ≥10% of body weight and either regained or maintained for a year | 37 | 41.6 | 100 | 32.75 | 84% employed; Highest level of education: High school 22% regainers (R), 0 maintainers (M); Some college 29% M; 48% R; College grad 50% M; 22% R; Grad school 21% M; 8% R | African–American |
| Befort, 2008 22 | USA | Perceptions and beliefs about body size, weight and weight loss among obese African–American women | ≥18, African–American, female, obese according to self‐reported weight and height. Excl. obvious intoxication or current inpatient for substance abuse treatment, marked inappropriate affect or behaviour, acute illness or impaired cognition | 62 | 46.6 | 100 | 40.3 | 15% some high school, 21% HS grad; 63% some college, 2% college grad; 50% full time employed; 8% part time; 42% not employed | African–American |
| Bennett, 2013 34 | UK | How men communicate with each other about their bodies, weight management projects and masculinities | NS | 116 | NS | 0 | NS | NS | NS |
| Bidgood, 2005 35 | UK | Obese adults' experiences and feelings about weight loss attempts and maintenance | Obese men and women ≥18, BMI ≥30 | 18 | NS | 89 | NS | NS | NS |
| Byrne, 2003 36 | UK | Psychological factors associated with successful and unsuccessful weight maintenance | Female, aged 20–60 years, history of BMI >29.9 who at some point in last 2 years lost ≥10% weight through deliberate caloric restriction. Maintainers: maintained lower weight (within 3.2 kg) for ≥1 year. Regainers: Regained to within 3.2 kg of original weight. Excl. weight loss due to medical/ psychiatric condition or use of medication; weight loss or regain because of pregnancy or childbirth, history of anorexia or bulimia | 56 | 41 | 100 | NS | Social class 1–2 47%; 3 nm–3 m 30%, 4–5 1%; students 13%; housewives 7%; unemployed 1% | NS |
| Callen, 2008 37 | USA | Weight change in older adults, focussing on methods | Community dwelling, ≥80, ‘cognitively intact or mild intellectual impairment’, English speaking, BMI ≥27, able to stand for height and weight | 9 | 82 | 33 | 30.17 | Education range 8th grade to postgrad. Two had incomes below poverty level | NS (‘lack of ethnic representation’) |
| Chambers, 2012 38 | UK | Long term weight maintenance | 30 years or older, wide range of weight experiences. Excl factors that could impact directly on current weight (incl. pregnancy, some medications, medical conditions, and anorexia) | 14 | 48 | 75 | NS | NS | Caucasian |
| Chang, 2008 39 | USA | Motivators and barriers to healthful eating and physical activity among low‐income overweight/obese non‐Hispanic black and white mothers | Women, non‐Hispanic white or non‐Hispanic Black, 18–35 years old, not pregnant or breastfeeding, able to speak and read English, BMI 25–39.9, interested in prevention of weight gain, ≥3 months postpartum, ≥1 child enrolled in government food and nutrition service programme | 80 | 25.8 | 100 | 31.15 | 47% high school or less education | 41 non‐Hispanic black; 39 non‐Hispanic white |
| Collins, 2012 25 | USA | Perceptions of previously obese individuals after self‐guided weight loss | Female, aged 35–60, self‐identified as ‘obese‐reduced weight maintainers’ of ≥10% of original weight for ≥1 year | 11 | 45.6 | 100 | NS | NS | NS |
| Davis, 2014 26 | USA | Experiences of college students in the weight‐loss process | Full time students at one Midwestern university considered overweight at some point during college enrolment, active in trying to lose weight for ≥6 months, willing to be interviewed, 18 years or older | 5 | NS | 60 | NS | NS | Four Caucasian; one ‘person of colour’ |
| Diaz, 2007 24 | USA | Weight loss experiences, attitudes and barriers in overweight Latino adults | Age ≥20, BMI ≥25, self‐identified Latino | 21 | NS | 90 | NS | Five had education beyond high school | Self‐identified Latinos |
| Faw, 2014 40 | USA | Support management strategies used by overweight young adults attempting to lose weight | Perceive themselves as being overweight or obese, attempted to lose weight at least once during past year (all undergraduate university students) | 25 | 21.1 | 64 | 27.1 | NS | Asian/ Asian American 44%; white 40% |
| Frank, 2012 27 | USA | Weight loss maintenance | History of weight cycling; highest ever BMI≥30; maintained loss reflects BMI of 18.5–24.9; weight loss achieved without bariatric surgery and maintained for ≥3 years; American born and raised | 10 | NS | 90 | NS | Two some college; Three completed college; Five college + advanced degree | Eight Caucasian, one Latina and one biracial |
| Green, 2009 41 | UK | Phenomenology of repeated diet failure | Over 18, speak fluent English, ≥2 serious attempts to diet which they considered had failed, unhappy with current eating habits. Excl eating disorder or medical/psychological input re: eating | 11 | 40 | 82 | NS | NS | One British Pakistani; 10 white British |
| Heading, 2008 42 | Australia | Risk logics, embodiment, issues related to adult obesity in remote New South Wales | ‘rural adults’, ‘history of unwanted weight’ | 19 | NS | 68 | NS | Education ranged from some high school to postgraduate qualifications | NS |
| Hindle, 2011 43 | UK | Experiences, perceptions and feelings of weight loss maintainers | Maintained ≥10% weight loss for ≥1 year, stable weight for last 6 months, 18 years or older and English speaking. Excl. weight loss through bariatric surgery, VLCD, within 6m of giving birth | 10 | 44 | 100 | 25.8 | ‘Employed, retired or housewives with employed partners’ | Caucasian |
| Hwang, 2010 44 | USA | Social support for weight loss in web community | Members of SparkPeople.com online weight loss community | 13 | 36 | 100 | NS | NS | White |
| Jaksa, 2011 28 | USA | Experience of maintaining substantial weight loss | Maintained weight loss for ≥2 years; lost ≥20% body weight; within 10–15 lb of their goal weight; willing to commit to reflecting on their experience through the process of an audiorecorded interview; not undergone any surgical procedures affecting or manipulating appetite regulation; at least 20 years old | 12 | NS | 92 | NS | Four graduate students; five full time employed; one part time employed; one stay at home mother; one on long term disability | NS |
| Karfopoulou, 2013 45 | Greece | Weight loss maintenance and Mediterranean diets | 20–65 years old, at some point in their lives BMI >25 (excl. pregnancy), intentionally lost ≥10% of starting weight. Maintainers had to be at or below the 10% weight loss for ≥1 year, regainers had to be at a weight ≥95% of their starting weight. Excl. history of anorexia | 44 | 33 | 59 | 27.65 | NS | NS |
| Macchi, 2007 29 | USA | Process of meaning‐making associated with weight loss and maintenance | Female, 30–45 when initially lost weight, intentionally lost ≥10% of initial body weight without undergoing bariatric surgery and maintained ≥10% lost | 10 | NS | 100 | NS | NS | All white |
| McKee, 2013 46 | UK | Weight maintenance | Previous BMI ≥25, intentionally lost 10% through diet and/or exercise and maintained for ≥12 months within range of 2.2 kg OR regained weight lost | 18 | 45 | 89 | 28.3 | Non‐academic university staff, self‐employed or retired members of the public | 10 British, 5 South Asian, 3 other |
| Reyes, 2012 47 | USA | Weight loss maintenance | 25–64 years old, intentionally lost ≥10% weight in past 2 years; regainers regained ≥33% of their weight loss and maintainers regained ≤15%. Excl participants with type 2 diabetes, history of cancer, or bariatric surgery | 29 | 47 | 65.6 | 32.5 | NS | 41% white; 59% African–American |
| Sanford, 2012 48 | US, UK, Canada | Weight loss blogs | Need to lose ≥100 lb (not clear how this was defined), had been blogging for ≥3 months about weight loss. Excl bariatric or lap band surgery | 50 | 40 | 80 | NS | NS | NS |
| Stuckey, 2011 49 | USA | Successful weight loss maintenance practices | lost ≥30 lb and maintained for ≥1 year, age >21, not pregnant, English speaking. Excl. bariatric surgery | 61 | NS | 72 | NS | 90% at least some college | 79% white |
| Su, 2015 50 | Taiwan | Taiwanese perimenopausal women's weight loss experience | Women 45–60 years, undergoing perimenopause (self‐report); BMI ≥27; trying to lose weight; could communicate in Mandarin and Taiwanese; met diagnostic criteria for metabolic syndrome for Asian populations (e.g. >3 of (1) waist circumference ≥80 cm, (2) fasting blood glucose ≥100 mg dl−1, (3) high‐density cholesterol <50 mg dl−1, (4) triglycerides ≥150 mg dl−1 (5) systolic pressure ≥130 mmHg or diastolic ≥85 mmHg) | 18 | 52 | 100 | 32.6 | 5 housewives, 13 employed. 7 had attended university. | NS |
| Thomas, 2008 51 | Australia | Lived experiences of obesity and weight loss attempts | BMI ≥30 | 76 | 47 | 83 | 42.5 | 51% unemployed. 45% at least completed high school | 80% White Australian; 5% English; 20% Other European |
| Tyler, 1997 52 | USA | Weight loss methods among women | Female, 18–60 years without major health problems, not pregnant, US born, living in study area, normal or overweight BMI | 80 | 34 | 100 | NS | 50% higher SES (Hollingshead index 40‐66); 50% lower SES (8‐39). 26 high school or less; 28 partial college; 13 college graduate; 12 graduate degree | 40 African–American and 40 Euro American |
| Witwer, 2014 30 | USA | Weight loss maintenance | Adult (18 years or older), lost ≥10% of body weight and maintained loss for ≥1 year, excl. bariatric surgery, unintentional weight loss, residents of long‐term care settings, non‐English speakers | 12 | NS | 66 | NS | 3 some college, 9 college degree; 9 full time employed, 2 part time, 1 retired | NS |
Note: NS=not specified; Excl=excluded; SES: socio economic status