Online Discussion Forums Are Good For Our Health: Here's Why

Could online discussion forums be good for our overall health and wellness? New findings published in the journal Computers in Human Behavior suggest that there are benefits for both individuals and wider society to this type of social media than previously realized.

"Our findings paint a more optimistic picture of old-style online discussion forums. Often we browse forums just hoping to find answers to our questions. In fact, as well as finding answers, our study showed users often discover that forums are a source of great support, especially those seeking information about more stigmatizing conditions," Dr. Louise Pendry, lead author of the study, said in a statement.

For the study, researchers recruited participants who were classified in two groups: those whose forum subject could be considered stigmatized (such as those dealing with mental health issues, postnatal depression or a particular parenting choice for example) or non-stigma-related forums (such as those for golfers, bodybuilders and environmental issues).

They asked them a set of questions that related to their motivations for joining the discussion forum, including the fulfillment of their expectations, their association with the forum, their satisfaction with life in general and their offline engagement with issues that were discussed on the forum.

"What we are seeing here is that forum users who get more involved develop strong links with other users. They come to see themselves as more identified with other forum users," researcher Dr. Jessica Salvatore said in a statement. "And then these more identified users see the greatest benefits, in terms of positive links with mental health and getting involved offline. In a nutshell, the more users put into the forum, the more they get back, and the pay-off for both users themselves and society at large can be significant."