ABSTRACT
The growth of digital technologies has enabled the creation of online platforms for sex workers to share, create, and gather information. To elucidate how this community leverages social media, the current study analyzed how sex workers and related groups (e.g. clients) communicate in a pseudonymous online space - r/SexWorkers. A content analysis of 103 posts and 967 comments submitted to r/SexWorkers between March 13, 2021, and February 22, 2022 was performed, evaluating 1) the prevalence of risk (i.e. to sex workers and clients) within the community's discourse, 2) types of information shared within the community (e.g. legal, health, and support), 3) features of information exchange (e.g. seeking and providing), and 4) the emergence and confrontation of stigma. The findings of this study indicate that users took specific interest in the risks sex workers face (as opposed to clients), providing information predominantly about economic and health concerns, discussing potential abuses, and providing support to one another. Moreover, while stigma was not commonly discussed by the community, users who did engage with stigma (especially professional stigma) sought to counteract prevailing beliefs about sex work. Accordingly, r/SexWorkers seemingly provides a beneficial online space for sex workers and clients to discuss risk, safety, and stigma.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: A growing body of health communication scholarship has explored the utility of social media platforms for eliciting social support, although much of this scholarship has focused on Facebook and Twitter. This study contributes to this body of research by identifying support in comments submitted to depression-related Imgur posts. Furthermore, the use of non-bona fide linguistic features (e.g. humor, sarcasm, and irony) is documented for comparison with supportive elements. METHODS: A content analysis was performed of 1530 comments submitted in response to 20 popular Imgur posts about depression, including the emergence of four social support types outlined by the Multi-Dimensional Support Scale-reassuring, empathic, informational, and tangible support-as well as non-bona fide features. RESULTS: Findings suggest a supportive discourse, with nearly 60% of comments containing some supportive element. Reassuring and informational support emerged most prominently (26.3% and 26.2% of comments, respectively), followed by empathic (22.9%) and tangible (0.3%) support types. Non-bona fide features manifested in 28.8% of comments. Results indicate significant covariation between non-bona fide features and support, as these infrequently co-occurred. CONCLUSIONS: This study's findings suggest that depression-related messages frequently receive support from Imgur commenters, especially reassuring and informational support. Additionally, this study provides a conceptual framework for future analyses of online social support by integrating non-bona fide communication with established support types. The results of this study could have implications for health professionals and scholars interested in the use of social media platforms such as Imgur, which serves a predominantly young male demographic, for support provision.
ABSTRACT
Social support research has demonstrated the physical and psychological benefits of social support for patients, but has done little to identify successful strategies for eliciting social support. However, contemporary digital channels offer new ways to examine this issue. In particular, this study explores vlogging as a coping strategy for cancer patients and a context in which to explore predictors of online social support. A content analysis of 69 YouTube vlogs and 869 associated comments was performed. A series of multilevel binomial logistic regression analyses revealed that narrative features that position the cancer patient as protagonist-including providing an explanation of the diagnosis experience, agentive problem solving, and positive reappraisal of the situation-were associated with receiving empathic support. In contrast, moralizing pleads for audience checkups decreased the likelihood of receiving empathic support. Findings contribute to an undertheorized body of research that also has translational value for patients, doctors, and designers of supportive online spaces who might eventually recommend narrative vlogging in clinical settings.
