Can online peer support groups benefit people with mental illness?
February 24th, 2011 - 6:27 pm ICT by ANIWashington, Feb 24 (ANI): Previous research has shown that people with mental illnesses prefer online peer support groups over face-to-face support groups.
However, research on its clinical effectiveness is limited, and findings are mixed.
Mark Salzer of Temple University and colleagues studied the well being of 300 participants with severe mental illnesses, including schizophrenia-spectrum, who were assigned to an email list-serv, a bulletin board online community, or a control group.
After a year, the researchers found participating in online peer support groups did not have much impact on their overall well-being from a statistical standpoint.
However, Salzer found evidence that the participants who were assigned to the online peer support groups felt the groups were relevant, supportive, and beneficial.
“These groups likely provide some degree of comfort in sharing a similar experience. While we can’t yet quantify the benefit with our measurements, it does appear that participants benefit in online contacts with one another,” said Salzer.
He said that the lack of statistical evidence for the effectiveness of these groups should not deter doctors from allowing their patients to use them.
“If anything, clinicians should become more familiar with online groups because of their prevalence. They should be discussing their use with clients, and talking about ways to safely navigate online resources to get the maximum benefit,” he added.
The study has been published in Social Science and Medicine. (ANI)
- Combo therapy shows promise for early-stage schizophrenia - Sep 07, 2010
- Regular exercise may boost physical, mental well-being of schizophrenics - May 12, 2010
- Immunologists rule out virus' role in mental illness - Feb 01, 2012
- Yoga effective in treating psychiatric disorders - Sep 20, 2011
- Psychotic illness 'begins at younger age among those who use cannabis' - Feb 08, 2011
- Breastfeeding moms not considered for jobs - Apr 17, 2011
- Rescued Chilean miners' new challenge: Re-establishing ties with family - Oct 17, 2010
- New US psychiatry manual targets binge eating, not sex addiction, obesity - Feb 11, 2010
- Bipolar disorder 'not linked to violent behaviour' - Sep 07, 2010
- How oestrogen can make you smarter - Nov 18, 2010
- Smoking cessation treatments work for people with severe mental illness - May 21, 2010
- Depression too has a positive effect - May 05, 2011
- Lower enzyme levels linked with schizophrenia - Jul 21, 2011
- Tai Chi, Qigong offer significant health benefits - Jul 01, 2010
- Even mild stress can lead to long-term disability - Mar 24, 2011
Tags: clinical effectiveness, clinicians, colleagues, control group, email list, list serv, maximum benefit, measurements, online resources, peer support groups, people with mental illness, people with mental illnesses, prevalence, previous research, salzer, schizophrenia, social science and medicine, standpoint, statistical evidence, temple university