Abstract
The increase in obesity over the past 30 years has led researchers to investigate the role of social networks as a contributing factor. However, several challenges make it difficult to demonstrate a causal link between friends’ physical fitness and own fitness using observational data. To overcome these problems, we exploit data from a unique setting in which individuals are randomly assigned to peer groups. We find statistically significant positive peer effects that are roughly half as large as the own effect of prior fitness on current fitness. Evidence suggests that the effects are caused primarily by friends who were the least fit, thus supporting the provocative notion that poor physical fitness spreads on a person-to-person basis. ► This study examines whether friends’ physical fitness affects one’s own fitness. ► We identify the effect in a setting where peers were randomly assigned. ► We find statistically and economically large peer effects on physical fitness. ► The effects are caused primarily by friends who were the least fit.
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