Navigating an Instagram Community for Eating Disorder Recovery: A Qualitative Study of Users' Motivation and Confidence to Change

Background:Treatment engagement and motivation to change remain significant challenges that impact treatment delivery in people with eating disorders. Feelings of shame, stigma, ambivalence and lack of motivation are prominent barriers affecting their engagement with treatment. There is recent evidence that using online recovery communities is beneficial in reaching individuals who do not have access to traditional services. The present study has been designed to investigate the perceived significance and level of confidence regarding change exhibited by individuals suffering from an eating disorder who are active participants in a recovery Instagram community. Methods: A mixed methods study surveyed 205 women (mean age = 23.14 years) from an Instragram recovery community. Thematic qualitative analysis was used to evaluate themes reported in response to open-ended questions about participants’ meaning and confidence to change. Results:Participants reported higher scores for motivation to change than for ability to change. Seven themes were interpreted from the qualitative data (i.e. Emotional Needs, Management illness factors, External Motivation, Negative Sel-beliefs, Internal and External Resources, and Characteristics of eating disorders). Conclusions: The results of this study highlight that although participants report the importance of change, there are some concerns about their ability to change, related to their negative self-beliefs and ambivalence about change. The findings also suggest that Instragram recovery communities are promising platforms for improving help-seeking among users with eating disorders.