Characteristics and engagement among English-language online forums for addiction recovery available in the US

IF 3.6 2区医学 Q1 HEALTH CARE SCIENCES & SERVICES

Internet Interventions-The Application of Information Technology in Mental and Behavioural Health Pub Date : 2024-01-13 DOI:10.1016/j.invent.2024.100708

Jason B. Colditz , Lily H. Hsiao , Brandon G. Bergman , David W. Best , Eric G. Hulsey , Jaime E. Sidani , Bruce L. Rollman , Kevin L. Kraemer

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Abstract

In developing public resources for the Networks Enhancing Addiction Recovery – Forum Activity Roadmap (NEAR-FAR), we completed a systematic observational study of English-language online forums related to recovery from alcohol or other drug addiction in late 2021. Among 207 identified forums, the majority were classified as “general addiction” or alcohol-focused, though classifications related to other substances were common on websites hosting multiple forums. Commonly used social media platforms such as Reddit, Facebook, or Quora offered easily accessible venues for individuals seeking online support related to a variety of substances. Forums were related to established recovery programs such as 12-step and SMART Recovery as well as other nonprofit and for-profit recovery programs, and to community forums without formal recovery programming. Among 148 forums with any observed user activity, the median time between unique user engagements was 27 days (inter-quartile range: 2–74). Among 98 forums with past-month posting activity, we found a median of <10 posts per week (inter-quartile range: 1–78). This study compares three metrics of observed forum activity (posts per week, responses per post, time between unique user engagements) and operationalizes forum characteristics that may potentiate opportunities for enhanced engagement and social support in addiction recovery.

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美国戒毒英语在线论坛的特点和参与情况

在为 "网络促进毒瘾康复--论坛活动路线图"（NEAR-FAR）开发公共资源的过程中，我们于 2021 年末完成了对与酒精或其他药物成瘾康复相关的英语在线论坛的系统观察研究。在已确定的 207 个论坛中，大多数被归类为 "一般成瘾 "或以酒精为重点，但在主办多个论坛的网站上，与其他物质相关的分类也很常见。常用的社交媒体平台，如 Reddit、Facebook 或 Quora，为寻求与各种药物相关的在线支持的个人提供了便捷的途径。论坛与 12 步康复计划和 SMART 康复计划等成熟的康复计划有关，也与其他非营利性和营利性康复计划有关，还与没有正式康复计划的社区论坛有关。在 148 个观察到用户活动的论坛中，独特用户参与活动的间隔时间中位数为 27 天（四分位间范围：2-74）。在 98 个有过去一个月发帖活动的论坛中，我们发现每周发帖的中位数为 10 个（四分位数之间的范围：1-78）。本研究比较了观察到的论坛活动的三个指标（每周帖子数、每篇帖子的回复数、独特用户参与之间的时间间隔），并对论坛特征进行了操作性分析，这些特征可能会促进戒毒过程中的参与机会和社会支持。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Internet Interventions-The Application of Information Technology in Mental and Behavioural Health Medicine-Health Informatics

CiteScore

6.50

自引率

9.30%

发文量

审稿时长

6 weeks

期刊介绍： Official Journal of the European Society for Research on Internet Interventions (ESRII) and the International Society for Research on Internet Interventions (ISRII). The aim of Internet Interventions is to publish scientific, peer-reviewed, high-impact research on Internet interventions and related areas. Internet Interventions welcomes papers on the following subjects: • Intervention studies targeting the promotion of mental health and featuring the Internet and/or technologies using the Internet as an underlying technology, e.g. computers, smartphone devices, tablets, sensors • Implementation and dissemination of Internet interventions • Integration of Internet interventions into existing systems of care • Descriptions of development and deployment infrastructures • Internet intervention methodology and theory papers • Internet-based epidemiology • Descriptions of new Internet-based technologies and experiments with clinical applications • Economics of internet interventions (cost-effectiveness) • Health care policy and Internet interventions • The role of culture in Internet intervention • Internet psychometrics • Ethical issues pertaining to Internet interventions and measurements • Human-computer interaction and usability research with clinical implications • Systematic reviews and meta-analysis on Internet interventions