Online forum messages posted by adolescents with type 1 diabetes

Nutrition Research Newsletter, Nov, 2004

As the availability of Web-based information about health has expanded, so, too, has the access of adolescents to healthcare information. Beyond serving as a repository of general health information, the Interact has become a source for diabetes-specific information. Adolescents with diabetes have access to stored information, can query experts about concerns, and turn to peers for support and advice. Little is known about how adolescents with type 1 diabetes use the Internet for information and support, or the impact of Internet-based information on their health. The present study was designed to explore the character of messages posted by adolescents with diabetes at 2 types of online forums, question/answer forums and discussion forums. Question/answer forums are sites at which individuals post messages that are publicly answered by an expert or professional. Discussion forums include theme-centered Internet support groups and message boards in which peers query and reply to one another's messages.

Messages (n=340) from adolescents self-identified as having diabetes were collected from public online discussion and question/answer forums and coded with respect to age, gender, duration of illness, and purpose of the post. Request messages were analyzed using a constant comparative method to generate descriptive categories. Nonparametric tests assessed for differences among groups and between forum types and request topics.

Most messages were from females who more often posted at discussion forums. Males posted more information requests. Six categories emerged from the analysis: life tasks, social support, medical care, factual information, management, and intrapsychic. Social support messages accounted for half of discussion forum requests; information/management requests were common in question/answer forums.

Data suggest that adolescents with diabetes visit online forums for social support, information, advice, and shared experience. Females used discussion groups more frequently and males requested more information. These findings are both good and bad news. Although a large number of messages were management-related questions that probably were best addressed by the adolescent's own health team, at least these questions were directed to professionals at the question/answer forum most of the time. Enhancing clinical-based online interchanges may allow adolescents to post information and management requests in a convenient and nonthreatening manner with the advantage of getting information from their own healthcare team.

R Ravert, M Hancock, G Ingersoll. Online forum messages posted by adolescents with type 1 diabetes. Diab Educ 30(5):827-834 (October 2004) [Correspondence: Russell Ravert, Department of Counseling and Educational Psychology, Wright Education Building, 201 North Rose Avenue, Bloomington, IN 47405-1006. Email: rravert@indiana.edu].