Journal ArticleDOI
Who talks? The social psychology of illness support groups.
TLDR
Support seeking was highest for diseases viewed as stigmatizing and was lowest for less embarrassing but equally devastating disorders, such as heart disease, and implications for social comparison theory and its applications in health care are discussed.Abstract:
More Americans try to change their health behaviors through self-help than through all other forms of professionally designed programs. Mutual support groups, involving little or no cost to participants, have a powerful effect on mental and physical health, yet little is known about patterns of support group participation in health care. What kinds of illness experiences prompt patients to seek each other's company? In an effort to observe social comparison processes with real-world relevance, support group participation was measured for 20 disease categories in 4 metropolitan areas (New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Dallas) and on 2 on-line forums. Support seeking was highest for diseases viewed as stigmatizing (e.g., AIDS, alcoholism, breast and prostate cancer) and was lowest for less embarrassing but equally devastating disorders, such as heart disease. The authors discuss implications for social comparison theory and its applications in health care.read more
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
Like or Dislike? Impact of Facebook on Ewing Sarcoma Treatment
TL;DR: The Facebook group Ewing Sarcoma Awareness has a relevant impact on group members regarding their choice of treatment and participants turn toward the group to receive mental and emotional support in everyday life.
Proceedings ArticleDOI
The new blocs on the block: using community forums to foster new neighbourhoods
TL;DR: This analysis highlights the particularly concentrated usage in newly established developments where a pre-existing community may be absent, and suggests these communications provide a valuable resource to understand local issues relevant to the community.
Is there a Doctor in the Crowd? Diagnosis Needed! (for less than $5)
TL;DR: While volunteer channels proved ineffective for us, design limitations and opportunities for improvement are discussed, Mechanical Turk workers without medical training not only correctly diagnosed easy cases, but also a previously unsolved case from CrowdMed involving extensive patient details.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
A Theory of Social Comparison Processes
TL;DR: In this article, the authors pointed out that there is a strong functional tie between opinions and abilities in humans and that the ability evaluation of an individual can be expressed as a comparison of the performance of a particular ability with other abilities.
Book
Statistical abstract of the United States
TL;DR: The Red River of the North basin of the Philippines was considered a part of the Louisiana Purchase by the United States Department of Commerce in the 1939 Census Atlas of the United Philippines as discussed by the authors.
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The theory and practice of group psychotherapy
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Journal ArticleDOI
Internet paradox: A social technology that reduces social involvement and psychological well-being?
Robert E. Kraut,Michael Patterson,Vicki Lundmark,Sara Kiesler,Tridas Mukophadhyay,William L. Scherlis +5 more
TL;DR: Greater use of the Internet was associated with declines in participants' communication with family members in the household, declines in the size of their social circle, and increases in their depression and loneliness.
Journal ArticleDOI