Incorporating Social Media into your Support Tool Box: Points to Consider from Genetics-Based Communities

Patients with newly-described or rare genetic findings are turning to social media to find and connect with others. Blogs, Facebook groups, and Twitter have all been reported as tools for patients to connect with one another. However, the preferences for social media use and privacy among patients, their families, and these communities have not been well characterized. To explore preferences about privacy and membership guidelines, an online survey was administered to two web-based patient registries, Simons Variation in Individuals Project (www.simonsvipconnect.org) and GenomeConnect (www.genomeconnect.org). Over a three-month period, invitations were sent to 2524 individuals and 103 responses (4%) were received and analyzed. Responses indicate that Facebook is the most popular resource accessed within this sample population (99%). Participants used social media to look for information about their diagnosis or test results (83%), read posts from rare disease groups or organizations (73%), participate in conversations about their diagnosis (67%), and connect with others to find support (58%). Focusing on privacy issues in social media, respondents indicate that membership and access impact the level of comfort in sharing personal or medical information. Nearly 60% of respondents felt uncomfortable sharing photos or medical information within a public Facebook group, whereas only 12% of respondents felt uncomfortable sharing in private group targeted to families alone. Using this preliminary data concerning social media use and privacy, we developed points for genetic counselors to incorporate when discussing available support resources for patients with a new, or rare, genetic diagnosis or genetic test result. Genetic counselors are trained to provide anticipatory guidance to families adapting to new genetic information, and are well-equipped to help patients consider their preferences about using social media as a source of information and support.     

Social Media as a Tool for Data Collection: Examining Equivalence of Socially Value-Laden Constructs

Given the changing online environment (from anonymity to social connection) and the importance of establishing equivalence in psychological measures used in online environments, the aim of this research was to examine the equivalence of socially value-laden measures with data sourced from web-based social media and traditional pen-and-paper methods. Data on a suite of socially value-laden measures comparing the equivalence of scores obtained via social media (Facebook) versus offline environments were considered. Participants (N?=?193) completed measures of primary and secondary psychopathy, emotional manipulation, emotional intelligence, interpersonal cognition, social desirability, and ethical position either online or using pen-and-paper in a between groups design. Results suggested that both social media and offline data were equivalent in terms of internal reliability and patterns of relationships among constructs. However, participants were more likely to report higher levels of ethical relativism when completing the measure via social media. These findings highlight the importance of establishing equivalence for specific measures when engaging in online data collection, as well as providing insight into the nature of self-disclosure in the social media environment. Future research should assess the equivalence of other socially value-laden measures in online and pen-and-paper environments.     

Caregivers of School-aged Children with Autism: Social Media as a Source of Support

Support groups provide parents of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) with additional support which they may not receive from health care professionals. Rapid technological growth has increased the opportunity for parents to access information and support. In this study, we used a qualitative phenomenological design to explore the use of a social media support group, on WhatsApp, to provide support to parents of children with ASD. We used convenience sampling to select six participants who had a child diagnosed with ASD who was in the foundation or intermediate phase at school and between the ages of 5 and 12 years, had been a part of the WhatsApp support group for 6 months or longer, and lived in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Data analysis revealed eight emergent themes, (a) communication support, (b) behavior support, (c) feeding support, (d) emotional support, (e) informational support, (f) the presence of a professional, (g) positive experiences in the group, and (h) limitations of the group. Findings indicate managing behavioral difficulties and emotional support for caregivers were the core functions of the group, and having a professional on the group served as a valuable resource. The use of a social media support group on WhatsApp provided ongoing support to parents of children with ASD, implying that such a group may have clinical significance for use by practitioners as well as the creation of similar groups on other platforms.     

Using Message Framing to Promote Social Support in Depression: When Misery Makes Better Company

A depressed person may have particular difficulty obtaining social support unless, as previous research indicates, members of the person’s support network believe that their interactions with the depressed person will be rewarding. Continuing this line of research, two studies investigated how message framing influences perceptions of providing social support to someone diagnosed with depression. In Study 1, participants first evaluated a website created by the research team, which emphasized either the rewards of volunteering to help individuals suffering from depression (gain-framed) or the drawbacks of not volunteering (loss-framed). One week later, participants read a vignette about a friend suffering from depression. Participants initially exposed to the gain-framed website indicated that the friend was in greater need of help, and they expressed stronger intentions to help and maintain supportive contact with the friend. The first phase of Study 2 was identical to the first phase of Study 1. However, a week after evaluating the framed website, participants interacted via instant messaging with a confederate posing as a prospective undergraduate student, who disclosed during the conversation that she had been diagnosed with depression. Participants initially exposed to the gain-framed website indicated greater comfort interacting with the prospective student and greater willingness to engage in follow-up interactions with the student (e.g., exchange emails, talk on the phone) compared to participants initially exposed to the loss-framed website. The implications of these findings for increasing the provision of social support to individuals with depression are discussed.     

Using Linguistic Corpora as a Philosophical Tool

The central aims of this paper are to show how linguistic corpora have been used and can be used in philosophy and to argue that linguistic corpora and corpus analysis should be added to the philosopher’s toolkit of ways to address philosophical questions. A linguistic corpus is a curated collection of texts representing language use that can be queried to answer research questions. Among many other uses, linguistic corpora can help answer questions about the meaning of words and the structure of discourse. Through a discussion of examples, the paper shows that there are many philosophical questions that can be addressed by using a linguistic corpus. However, linguistic corpora need not (and often cannot) replace traditional philosophical methods. Lastly, it argues that the special properties of linguistic corpora, including their independence and the current ease and cheapness of access, make them an indispensable resource for philosophers.     

Supportive Non-Parental Adults and Adolescent Psychosocial Functioning: Using Social Support as a Theoretical Framework

Supportive Non-Parental Adults (SNPAs), or non-parental adults who provide social support to youth, are present in the lives of many adolescents; yet to date, a guiding framework for organizing the existing literature on the provision of support provided by multiple types of SNPAS, such as teachers, natural mentors, and extended family members, as well as to inform future research efforts, is lacking. The aim of the current paper is to utilize the well-established lens of social support to integrate, across this broad range of literatures, recent findings regarding associations between SNPAs and four indices of adolescent psychosocial adjustment: academic functioning, self-esteem, and behavioral and emotional problems. Beyond offering an integrative framework for understanding the link between SNPAs and adolescent functioning, the issues reviewed here have potentially far-reaching consequences for adolescents and their families, as well as the professionals working with adolescents and their families in the health care, school, and community settings.     

Social Support as a School Victimisation Risk Factor

This study examined three sources of social support, peer groups, school and parents, and their impact on the risk of relational, verbal and physical bullying victimization in a representative sample of secondary school adolescents of Talavera de la Reina (Spain). Correlation analysis was used to establish associations and regression analysis in order to confirm the independent effect of each social support type with victimization. The results showed that low social support perception from peers, school and parents increased the risk of relational, verbal and physical bullying victimization. Additionally, the perception of lower parental social support increased the likelihood of relational and verbal bullying victimization, while the hypothesis that low perception of parental social support entailed a higher risk for physical victimization was not confirmed. These findings are discussed in light of previous studies.     

Ethical and Regulatory Considerations for Using Social Media Platforms to Locate and Track Research Participants

As social media becomes increasingly popular, human subjects researchers are able to use these platforms to locate, track, and communicate with study participants, thereby increasing participant retention and the generalizability and validity of research. The use of social media; however, raises novel ethical and regulatory issues that have received limited attention in the literature and federal regulations. We review research ethics and regulations and outline the implications for maintaining participant privacy, respecting participant autonomy, and promoting researcher transparency when using social media to locate and track participants. We offer a rubric that can be used in future studies to determine ethical and regulation-consistent use of social media platforms and illustrate the rubric using our study team’s experience with Facebook. We also offer recommendations for both researchers and institutional review boards that emphasize the importance of well-described procedures for social media use as part of informed consent.     

When Self-Worth Depends on Social Media Feedback: Associations with Psychological Well-Being

Sex Roles - Social media have become primary forms of social communication and means to maintain social connections among young adult women. Although social connectedness generally has a positive...     

A Seat at the Table: Using Social Media as a Platform to Resolve Microaggressions Against Transgender Persons

Transgender, gender variant, and/or gender nonconforming persons are marginalized and pathologized in society and communities. The advent and widespread use of social media introduce an entirely new avenue of expression where cyber bullying and verbal assaults are common. Yet, social media also has the capacity to reach more people in more places, thus presenting a potentially powerful platform for advocacy. Grounded in digital critical participatory action research, the authors present a multimedia advocacy project that highlights advocacy strategies in which counselors can utilize social media to raise awareness, promote inclusion, and resolve microaggressions toward transgender persons.     

Social Support and Money as Pain Management Mechanisms

Social exclusion and monetary loss are perceived as painful. The pain produced by these two kinds of events shares similar psychological and physiological systems with physical pain. Thus, physical pain, social pain, and monetary-loss pain were generally regarded as overlapping pain systems in previous theories. In this article, we propose that social exclusion is painful because it is a threat to a primary psychological buffer against pain—social support—whereas monetary loss is painful because money is a secondary pain buffer. Here both social support and money are conceptualized as pain buffers. We review a growing body of empirical data that support this contention. On the basis of a comprehensive analysis of the sociocultural and personal functions of social support and money, we formulate two basic hypotheses that have received empirical support. First, anticipation of pain heightens the desire for social support as well as the desire for money. Second, both social support and money reminders alleviate pain, whereas social exclusion and monetary loss result in an upsurge of pain awareness. In our view, social support is the primary defense against pain and the reliance on money may result from the failure of social support to accomplish its pain-buffering goal.     

一项社会支持的心理学研究

本研究以我国东、西部439户被征地农民家庭的主要劳力为对象,通过问卷调查,考察了被征地农民的社会支持。结果发现：被征地农民所获得的总的社会支持水平与城市居民投有显著差异,但在社会支持的某些维度上具有明显差异;我国东部地区被征地农民所获得的社会支持水平显著高于西部地区;人口统计因素(如年龄、受教育水平等)和社会心理因素(如征地前的职业、征地后的经济来源等)对被征地农民社会支持的不同方面具有不同影响。研究认为,征地部门需要重视被征地农民的就业安置或职业培训、以提高被征地农民的社会支持水平。尤其是我国西部地区被征地农民的社会支持水平。     

Social Support and Subjective Health in Fibromyalgia: Self-Compassion as a Mediator

Individuals with fibromyalgia report lower levels of health-related quality of life (HRQL) compared to other chronically ill populations and interpersonal factors (i.e., social support) may influence risk. What is less understood is how intrapersonal factors (i.e., self-compassion) may impact the social support-HRQL linkage. We examined the association between social support and HRQL in a sample of persons with fibromyalgia and tested the potential mediating role of self-compassion. Self-identified adults in the United States with fibromyalgia (N?=?508) were recruited from state, regional, and national organizations and support groups and completed an online battery of self-report questionnaires including: Multidimensional Health Profile—Psychosocial Functioning Index, Short-Form 36 Health Survey, and Self-Compassion Scale-Short Form. Individuals with greater subjective social support reported higher levels of self-compassion and, in turn, higher mental HRQL. These findings provide greater information about psychosocial constructs and HRQL and extend our understanding of self-compassion among individuals living with fibromyalgia.

     

Toward a Social Psychology of Social Support

An analysis of social psychological aspects of social support examined several stages of the interaction between provider and recipient. In the first stage, the provider may offer support, respond positively to requests for support, or decline requests for support, whereas the recipient may seek, accept, or reject support. In the second stage, after support is exchanged, attributions about its effect may occur for each member, which in turn affects the extent to which the support is continued and the nature of its effect. Attributional errors about the effect may occur, especially if factors other than support—such as external factors—alter the problem status. The final stage follows the resolution of the problem and may involve reciprocation of support when roles are reversed, although such reciprocity may not be a necessary condition for social support. Possible mechanisms for both positive as well as negative effects of support were postulated. Assessing the effects of support is complicated by factors such as individual differences, the degree of match between social support beliefs held by provider and recipient, type of problem, and the timing of support.     

The Normative Context of Advice as Social Support

Much of the existing research on social support overlooks the communicative processes that link supportive acts to beneficial effects. The present study represents an alternative approach: The authors document the multiple goals and implications of advice and the situational, conversational, and cultural context far the evaluation of advice among some White, middle-class, U.S. Americans. On the basis of observation of 112 advice episodes and interviews with 18 informants, the authors identify three dilemmas of seeking, receiving, and giving advice: Advice may be seen as helpful and caring or as butting in; advice may be experienced as honest or supportive; and seeking and taking advice may enact respect and gratitude, yet recipients reserve the right to make their own decisions. The identification of these dilemmas provides the basis for future research on the characteristics of more and less effective advice and for comparative research on advice in other speech communities.     

领悟社会支持、实际社会支持与大学生抑郁

该研究以316名大学生为被试,探讨了领悟社会支持和实际社会支持与大学生抑郁之间的关系。结构方程模型的分析表明,大学生对当前社会支持的领悟对抑郁具有直接的缓冲作用;实际社会支持主要通过领悟社会支持对大学生的抑郁情绪起缓冲作用。研究结果暗示着,领悟社会支持是一种在应对压力情境中发展起来的特质或图式,在个体应对压力时表现为一种弹性人格,从而防止消极情绪的恶化或产生。