Abstract
Study objective: The present study aimed to examine effectiveness of evaluative feedback for maintaining a participant's self-monitoring with no others' aid and for returning him to his normal weight and girth after face-to-face health counseling specifically about metabolic syndrome. Design: A single-subject self-experiment with an ABACAD design was continued for 177 weeks. Setting: Self-monitoring was done at the participant's home. Participant: Male in his 50s, the author of this article. Independent variables: Face-to-face counseling and evaluative feedback presented on the participant's computer display. Measure: Weight, girth, and 5 behavioral goals: walking, bicycling, abstaining from alcohol, eating vegetables, and eating a moderate evening meal. Results: The gradual decrease in weight and girth observed in the first phase of the research disappeared in the second phase, but it apparently returned in the final phase when evaluative feedback was added contingent on the participant recording data. Conclusion: Recording contingent evaluative feedback may be effective in maintaining self-monitoring of weight and girth, and may eventually help individuals recover from metabolic syndrome without the support of other people.
