“Please Know That You Are Not Alone with Your Pain”: Responses to Newcomer Posts in an Online Grief Support Forum

Paulus, Trena M.; Varga, Mary Alice

doi:10.1080/07481187.2015.1047060

Cited by 31 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 46 publications

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“…In doing so, it provides an opportunity for them to attend to specific issues-such as suggestions or advice-while also maintaining authenticity and receiving support from the forum. The pattern is similar to that seen in the responses to grief support forums (Paulus & Varga, 2015), where empathy and advice is offered, alongside encouragement, to return to the forum and keep interacting with other forum members. In some cases in the suicide forum, the RFM will engage directly with these responses without demonstrating any direct resolution of the crisis point.…”

Section: Providing Supportsupporting

confidence: 69%

“…The forum members may gain validation of their experiences in the discussion forums (cf. Horne & Wiggins, 2009; Paulus & Varga, 2015; Varga & Paulus, 2013), and this may be the first stepping-stone toward a more positive state.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The rise of technology provides a unique opportunity to examine suicidal issues in online spaces (Mishara & Kerkhof, 2013), yet research to date has focused mainly on the motivations and individual characteristics of those using the Internet for this purpose, rather than on the social practices in the online spaces themselves. Following Horne and Wiggins (2009) and Paulus and Varga (2015), this article focuses on the provision and acknowledgment of support in an online suicide discussion forum. Specifically, the aim of this article is to explicate the interactional features of support in the suicide forums, and of the potential for members to be supported by others by being metaphorically talked back from the “edge,”; that is, representing a shift from being at a crisis point to a stance that might still be troubled but is not immediately suicidal.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Stepping Back From Crisis Points

2016

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Suicide is a global health concern, though little is known about the social practices that might support those who are contemplating suicide. Online forums provide a unique insight into the anonymous discussion of suicide, including sociocultural norms about suicide and the delicate management of online interaction. In this article, we examine the provision and acknowledgment of support in an online discussion forum about suicide, using discursive psychology to analyze the textual interaction. The analysis illustrates how forum threads function as case studies and enable members to gain support on numerous occasions. In this way, members can gain help at crisis points as and when these occur, while still maintaining authenticity as a valid forum member. The analysis also provides additional evidence for models of suicide which highlight the fluid nature of suicidality and contributes to the preventative work on suicide by demonstrating how support can be provided at crisis points.

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Section: Providing Supportsupporting

confidence: 69%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Stepping Back From Crisis Points

2016

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“…Some researchers have collected large amounts of Internet data and quantitized themes by counting specific types of posts (Kim et al, 2016;Scharett et al, 2017). Others have relied on inductive analyses in order to discover key themes (Coulson & Greenwood, 2011;Paulus & Varga, 2015). We did both, adopting the Bifurcated Method (Seifert et al, 2019) so that we might discern key themes in AD stakeholder posts and add rigour to our analyses with quantitization of themes using a web-crawling computer program.…”

Section: The Current Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

Experiences in Alzheimer’s disease: What do stakeholders post on the Internet?

et al. 2020

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Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative condition that is chronic, progressive and terminal across an interval of approximately five to ten years from the time of diagnosis. Disease management in AD and other illnesses has been conceptualized in a number of ways, including the Health Co-Inquiry approach (a cooperative endeavor that activates stakeholders, regards all stakeholder views, uses evidence-based practice, and strives for integrated care). With growth of Internet use, Health Co-Inquiry may occur online as stakeholders in chronic disease management search for and give information and support. The current study is a first look at the online posts of all AD stakeholders. Our goal is to shed light on their experiences by characterizing the themes in their posts. A Bifurcated Method was used with quantitization of information through a web-crawling program in order to corroborate or refute the findings from an inductive, thematic (qualitative) analysis. Results indicate that AD stakeholders utilize the Internet for: information, assistance, emotional support or relief, and advice about decision-making and behaviour challenges. Persons with AD posted little compared to caregivers and were prone to report subjective cognitive impairment (SCI) and ask for help regarding diagnosis. Caregivers were apt to divulge personal stories, ask whether they should deceive a person with AD, and request information about coping or note that posting online was a coping mechanism. Providers’, agencies’ and companies’ posts were likely to give information and offer technical advice, answer specific caregiver questions, and offer paid services/clinical trials. As a first study of all AD stakeholder online narratives, data indicate that more than half of sites and posts are dedicated to the concerns of caregivers and persons with AD, indicating that they are engaging in some aspects of Health Co-Inquiry online.

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“…Both emotional and informational support appear to be common (Bautista & Lin, 2015; Malik & Coulson, 2010; Myrick, Holton, Himelboim, & Love, 2016). These online venues can provide a sanctuary for those who may be experiencing grief that is viewed as nonnormative in their offline relationships (Gil-Egui et al., 2017; Paulus & Varga, 2015; Varga & Paulas, 2014). In fact, those who feel their grief lacks social recognition may be more likely to turn to the Internet for support and emotional expression (Davidson & Letherby, 2014; Degroot & Leith, 2015).…”

Section: Grief Bereavement and Memes||mentioning

confidence: 99%

Lafayette Strong: A Content Analysis of Grief and Support Online Following a Theater Shooting

Pearce

2017

Illness, Crisis & Loss

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On July 23, 2015, in the Grand 16 Theatre in Lafayette, Louisiana, a gunman opened fire in the 7 o’clock showing of the movie, Trainwreck. Mayci Breaux, 21, and Jillian Johnson, 33, both received fatal wounds. Nine others were injured. As part of a community healing event following the shooting, a Tagboard was established around the hashtag LafayetteStrong. This study was conducted using a content analysis of 493 photographs and images among these posts. Goffman’s dramaturgical analysis provides a framework for these findings to better comprehend the online performance of self for a grieving community. The images of people, objects, and digital images present evidence of an authentic self to a grieving community in the wake of a local tragedy.

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“Please Know That You Are Not Alone with Your Pain”: Responses to Newcomer Posts in an Online Grief Support Forum

Cited by 31 publications

References 46 publications

Stepping Back From Crisis Points

Stepping Back From Crisis Points

Experiences in Alzheimer’s disease: What do stakeholders post on the Internet?

Lafayette Strong: A Content Analysis of Grief and Support Online Following a Theater Shooting

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