Background Researchers and practitioners have developed numerous online interventions that encourage people to reduce their drinking, increase their exercise, and better manage their weight. Motivations to develop eHealth interventions may be driven by the Internet’s reach, interactivity, cost-effectiveness, and studies that show online interventions work. However, when designing online interventions suitable for public campaigns, there are few evidence-based guidelines, taxonomies are difficult to apply, many studies lack impact data, and prior meta-analyses are not applicable to large-scale public campaigns targeting voluntary behavioral change. Objectives This meta-analysis assessed online intervention design features in order to inform the development of online campaigns, such as those employed by social marketers, that seek to encourage voluntary health behavior change. A further objective was to increase understanding of the relationships between intervention adherence, study adherence, and behavioral outcomes. Methods Drawing on systematic review methods, a combination of 84 query terms were used in 5 bibliographic databases with additional gray literature searches. This resulted in 1271 abstracts and papers; 31 met the inclusion criteria. In total, 29 papers describing 30 interventions were included in the primary meta-analysis, with the 2 additional studies qualifying for the adherence analysis. Using a random effects model, the first analysis estimated the overall effect size, including groupings by control conditions and time factors. The second analysis assessed the impacts of psychological design features that were coded with taxonomies from evidence-based behavioral medicine, persuasive technology, and other behavioral influence fields. These separate systems were integrated into a coding framework model called the communication-based influence components model. Finally, the third analysis assessed the relationships between intervention adherence and behavioral outcomes. Results The overall impact of online interventions across all studies was small but statistically significant (standardized mean difference effect size d = 0.19, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.11 - 0.28, P < .001, number of interventions k = 30). The largest impact with a moderate level of efficacy was exerted from online interventions when compared with waitlists and placebos (d = 0.28, 95% CI = 0.17 - 0.39, P < .001, k = 18), followed by comparison with lower-tech online interventions (d = 0.16, 95% CI = 0.00 - 0.32, P = .04, k = 8); no significant difference was found when compared with sophisticated print interventions (d = –0.11, 95% CI = –0.34 to 0.12, P = .35, k = 4), though online interventions offer a small effect with the advantage of lower costs and larger reach. Time proved to be a critical factor, with shorter interventions generally achieving larger impacts and greater adherence. For psychological design, most interventions drew from the transtheoretical approach and were goal orientated, deploying numerous influence components aimed at showing users the consequences of their behavior, assisting them in reaching goals, and providing normative pressure. Inconclusive results suggest a relationship between the number of influence components and intervention efficacy. Despite one contradictory correlation, the evidence suggests that study adherence, intervention adherence, and behavioral outcomes are correlated. Conclusions These findings demonstrate that online interventions have the capacity to influence voluntary behaviors, such as those routinely targeted by social marketing campaigns. Given the high reach and low cost of online technologies, the stage may be set for increased public health campaigns that blend interpersonal online systems with mass-media outreach. Such a combination of approaches could help individuals achieve personal goals that, at an individual level, help citizens improve the quality of their lives and at a state level, contribute to healthier societies.
