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Check out our new paper on @jmirpub ( http://dx.doi.org/10.2196/23520 ): along with @jaimesidani @ashensa @brianprimack and mikemarshal, we surveyed 2,408 persons age 18-30 years to assess if negative #socialmedia experiences influence #depression among #LGBTQ respondents. We found that:
Higher rates of #depression among #LGBTQ persons can partially be explained by negative experiences that they encounter online. For #LGBTQ persons, #socialmedia has important resources for learning about identity and building connections with other LGBTQ individuals
But #socialmedia is not a perfect medium. So, we asked if in the past year, participants:
1. Were called out/hurt by a friend on #socialmedia
2. Received negative feedback on a post
3. Received no feedback on a post
4. Saw online that they weren’t invited to a friend’s event
1. Were called out/hurt by a friend on #socialmedia
2. Received negative feedback on a post
3. Received no feedback on a post
4. Saw online that they weren’t invited to a friend’s event
We found that young adults who identify as #LGBT reported both increased #depression symptoms and negative #socialmedia experiences in the past year.
Most importantly, our study results suggest that negative #socialmedia experiences mediate the disproportionately higher risk of #depression symptoms among persons identifying as #LGBTQ.
We concluded that:
1. Health providers may want to screen negative #socialmedia experiences when discussing #mentalhealth concerns with #LGBTQ patients
2. Creating interventions that reduce negative #some experiences could alleviate depressive symptoms among #LGBTQ persons
1. Health providers may want to screen negative #socialmedia experiences when discussing #mentalhealth concerns with #LGBTQ patients
2. Creating interventions that reduce negative #some experiences could alleviate depressive symptoms among #LGBTQ persons
