Discuss Issues With Strangers Online, Why Do We Do It?

Abstract

Abstract Objective: The objective is to provide an analysis of the characteristics that make an important contribution to opening up and talking about problems in an Online Support Group (OSG). Four aspects of OSG have been selected: recognition in other stories, lower costs in comparison to traditional, face-to-face support groups, higher levels of anonymity in regard to traditional support groups or support from family, and the accessibility of an online forum. Method: Participants were OSG users (N = 117, Mage = 35.61, SD = 12.48), which consisted of 27% males and 73% females. To investigate what the influence of the four variables is on Opening up, a survey has been used. Results: Some variables show high correlations. However, only Recognition shows a significant influence on Opening up (p = .02). Conclusions: This study has shown that only the independent variable Recognition is of influence on Opening up in an OSG. There is no significant relationship between Opening up and the other variables.