Our framework should help research ers and policy-makers identify the most effective incentive configurations for helping individuals adopt healthy behaviours
Financial incentive interventions are increasingly used as a method of encouraging healthy behaviours , from attending for vaccinations to taking part in regular physical activity .
There is a growing body of research on the effectiveness of financial incentive interventions for health behaviours .
Wide variations in the nature of these interventions make it difficult to draw firm conclusions about what makes an effective incentive , for whom and under what circumstances .
Whilst there has been some recognition of the theoretical complexity of financial incentive interventions for health behaviours , there is no framework that categorises these interventions .
This limits the research community 's ability to clearly establish which components of financial incentives interventions are more and less effective , and how these components might interact to enable behavioural change .
We propose a framework for describing health-promoting financial incentive interventions .
A low-cost reinforcement procedure improves short-term weight loss outcomes.
OBJECTIVE Reinforcement-based treatments , based on behavioral economics models , can improve outcomes of medical conditions with behavioral components . This study evaluated the efficacy of a low-cost reinforcement intervention to produce initial weight loss . METHODS Overweight individuals ( n=56 ) were r and omized to one of two 12-week treatments : Lifestyle , Exercise , Attitudes , Relationships , Nutrition manual with supportive counseling or that same treatment with opportunities to win $ 1 to $ 100 prizes for losing weight and completing weight-loss activities . RESULTS Patients receiving reinforcement  lost significantly more weight ( 6.0 % ± 4.9 % baseline bodyweight ) than patients in the non-reinforcement condition ( 3.5 % ± 4.1 % ; P=.04 ) . Moreover , 64.3 % of patients receiving reinforcement achieved weight loss of ≥ 5 % baseline bodyweight versus 25.0 % of those in the non-reinforcement condition ( P=.003 ) . Proportional weight loss was significantly related to reductions in total cholesterol and 24-hour ambulatory heart rate . CONCLUSION This reinforcement-based intervention  substantially enhances short-term weight loss , and reductions in weight are associated with important changes in clinical biomarkers . Larger-scale evaluation of reinforcement-based treatments  for weight loss is warranted
Our framework should help research ers and policy-makers identify the most effective incentive configurations for helping individuals adopt healthy behaviours
Financial incentive interventions are increasingly used as a method of encouraging healthy behaviours , from attending for vaccinations to taking part in regular physical activity .
There is a growing body of research on the effectiveness of financial incentive interventions for health behaviours .
Wide variations in the nature of these interventions make it difficult to draw firm conclusions about what makes an effective incentive , for whom and under what circumstances .
Whilst there has been some recognition of the theoretical complexity of financial incentive interventions for health behaviours , there is no framework that categorises these interventions .
This limits the research community 's ability to clearly establish which components of financial incentives interventions are more and less effective , and how these components might interact to enable behavioural change .
We propose a framework for describing health-promoting financial incentive interventions .