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Background: The World Health Organisation (WHO) predicts that depression will be the second leading cause of diseases by 2020. If depression is not properly treated, it can develop into a depressive disorder and increase the risk of suicide.Besides biopsychosocial factors, lifestyle is said to be a major cause of this disease and has led to an increase in its prevalence. Objective: The objective of this study was to study the intentions of patients with major depressive disorders and family caregivers to change their health behaviour and lifestyle through social media influences. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study. Participants were invited to take part in the research and give their informed consent. The sample consisted of 157 patients diagnosed with major depressive disorders, aged 18 years and over, and 110 family caregivers. Data were collected from the questionnaires designed according to the I-Change Model (ICM). Statistical results to confirm causal relationships were analysed based on Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) and by using the SmartPLS 3 software. Results: Patients and family caregivers were questioned about their perspectives on health matters and the influence on their motivations and intentions to change patients’ health behaviour and lifestyle, particularly social media interventions. The patients received information and counselling about health matters, health awareness, motivation and their intentions to change their health behaviour. The family caregivers were presented with the same information and counselling to motivate them to influence the depressive patients’ intentions to change their health behaviour. Conclusion: It is possible that lifestyle interventions on social media can influence the intention to change health behaviour in both patients and caregivers. However, if the patient lacks interest in participating in the treatment and does not have a good relationship with the clinician or provide relevant information to the experts; this can be an obstacle to changing their health behaviour. Therefore, future research should be conducted to ascertain which interventions are appropriate for patients and to study the long-term effects of any risks from using social media in patients with major depressive disorders.

It has been confirmed that the use of social media (SM) can affect the mental health of users. However, there is no explanation for its impact on health behavior. This study focuses on the perspectives of depressed patients and caregivers on social media usage and how it can change their health behavior. A questionnaire designed according to the framework of the I-Change Model (ICM) is used to collect data from a sample group. This group consists of 214 patients diagnosed with major depressive disorders, and 110 caregivers. The data is used to analyze causal relationships with the help of structural equation modeling. The results showed that from the patient's perspective it is essential to be aware of the content and volume of social media usage. An awareness of the perceived risk to privacy is also essentially a motivating factor in patients' decisions to use social media. The views of caregivers suggest that content valence has an essential role to play in their use of social media. After viewing content on social media patients change their behavior. The perceived privacy risk also plays a critical role in patients' decisions to use social media.

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