S. Berkovsky and J. Freyne (Eds.): PERSUASIVE 2013, LNCS 7822, pp. 155–160, 2013. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2013 Identifying Persuasive Qualities of Decentralized Peer-to-Peer Online Social Networks in Public Health Sahiti Myneni 1,* , Sriram Iyengar 1 , Nathan K.Cobb 2 , and Trevor Cohen 1 1 University of Texas School of Biomedical Informatics, Houston, TX, USA {Sahiti.Myneni,M.Sriram.Iyengar,Trevor.Cohen}@uth.tmc.edu 2 The Schroeder Institute for Tobacco Research and Policy Studies, American Legacy Foundation, Washington, DC, USA {NCobb}@legacyforhealth.org Abstract. Online social networks as behavior change support systems have been rapidly gaining in popularity. These networks have been studied by pub- lic health specialists from the point of view of traditional behavior change theories. However, scant research exists on the persuasive content of the mes- sages exchanged between participants in such networks. In this paper, we use Persuasive Systems Design (PSD) model to develop a framework for identify- ing persuasive attributes in online social networks. This framework was applied to QuitNet, an online social network for smoking cessation. Results indicated that the communication in QuitNet had persuasive qualities such as reduction, simulation, social learning, reminders, suggestions, and rewards. Further, these features were predominantly found in messages related to “QuitNet-specific customs”, “Quit progress”, and “Family and friends”. Use of this framework enables the development of quantitative relationships between persuasive attributes and behavior change outcomes experienced by network members. 1 Introduction The adverse health consequences of risky behaviors such as smoking have been well documented [1]. Several interventions have been proposed to help individuals cease smoking. Online social networks have been seen as a viable solution to promote such behavior changes [2]. These networks enable decentralized peer-peer support, which is not the case of other web-based systems. Traditionally, online social network analysis has been conducted from network science standpoint [3] or social support perspective [4]. There are few studies that analyze the persuasive attributes of com- munication in online social networks that promote lifestyle changes such as smoking cessation. In this paper, we analyze QuitNet, an online social network for smoking cessation using a novel framework that takes into account both behavior change theo- ries prominent in the public health domain and persuasive systems design principles.