International Journal of HIV/AIDS Prevention, Education and Behavioural Science

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Mental Health and HIV/AIDS: A Thematic Analysis of Communication and Support for People Living with HIV/AIDS in an Online Support Group

Received: 11 September 2018    Accepted: 20 September 2018    Published: 17 October 2018
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Abstract

Qualitative research on HIV/AIDS and the use of online support groups has suggested that participants benefit from them in terms of empowerment and emotional support. However there is almost no information available on the specific topic of mental health and concerns that people living with HIV/AIDS have around the topic, and what the role is of forums when participants look for orientation and relief from psychological distress. The aim of this study was to explore trends in discussion about mental health in online support groups and to try to identify usual concerns and strategies that members share in the forums when they address the matter of psychological distress, including mental disorders such as depression and anxiety. Thematic analysis of 701 messages posted by 220 members in a forum about mental health and HIV/AIDS revealed three themes: ‘Therapy almighty?’, ‘Swallow the pill or not’, and ‘Being lonely is not helping’. The findings suggest that participants tend to idealise therapy, medicine and companionship, which are the three main alternatives of solution to problems discussed in the online forum. This idealisation might be due to the uncertainties and burdens inherent to HIV/AIDS, and the need for hope in definitive solutions to the multiple problems this population can face. While other studies have considered online support groups as a source of relief themselves, our findings suggests that participants use them as a mean to mainly look for answers, obtaining only references to other resources that could actually have those desired answers.

DOI 10.11648/j.ijhpebs.20180402.11
Published in International Journal of HIV/AIDS Prevention, Education and Behavioural Science (Volume 4, Issue 2, December 2018)
Page(s) 26-34
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

HIV/AIDS, Idealisation, Therapy, Medicine, Companionship

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Author Information
  • School of Psychology, Catholic Pontifical University of Ecuador, Ambato, Ecuador

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    José Daniel Gil-Fortoul Bucheli. (2018). Mental Health and HIV/AIDS: A Thematic Analysis of Communication and Support for People Living with HIV/AIDS in an Online Support Group. International Journal of HIV/AIDS Prevention, Education and Behavioural Science, 4(2), 26-34. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijhpebs.20180402.11

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    José Daniel Gil-Fortoul Bucheli. Mental Health and HIV/AIDS: A Thematic Analysis of Communication and Support for People Living with HIV/AIDS in an Online Support Group. Int. J. HIV/AIDS Prev. Educ. Behav. Sci. 2018, 4(2), 26-34. doi: 10.11648/j.ijhpebs.20180402.11

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    AMA Style

    José Daniel Gil-Fortoul Bucheli. Mental Health and HIV/AIDS: A Thematic Analysis of Communication and Support for People Living with HIV/AIDS in an Online Support Group. Int J HIV/AIDS Prev Educ Behav Sci. 2018;4(2):26-34. doi: 10.11648/j.ijhpebs.20180402.11

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  • @article{10.11648/j.ijhpebs.20180402.11,
      author = {José Daniel Gil-Fortoul Bucheli},
      title = {Mental Health and HIV/AIDS: A Thematic Analysis of Communication and Support for People Living with HIV/AIDS in an Online Support Group},
      journal = {International Journal of HIV/AIDS Prevention, Education and Behavioural Science},
      volume = {4},
      number = {2},
      pages = {26-34},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ijhpebs.20180402.11},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijhpebs.20180402.11},
      eprint = {https://download.sciencepg.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijhpebs.20180402.11},
      abstract = {Qualitative research on HIV/AIDS and the use of online support groups has suggested that participants benefit from them in terms of empowerment and emotional support. However there is almost no information available on the specific topic of mental health and concerns that people living with HIV/AIDS have around the topic, and what the role is of forums when participants look for orientation and relief from psychological distress. The aim of this study was to explore trends in discussion about mental health in online support groups and to try to identify usual concerns and strategies that members share in the forums when they address the matter of psychological distress, including mental disorders such as depression and anxiety. Thematic analysis of 701 messages posted by 220 members in a forum about mental health and HIV/AIDS revealed three themes: ‘Therapy almighty?’, ‘Swallow the pill or not’, and ‘Being lonely is not helping’. The findings suggest that participants tend to idealise therapy, medicine and companionship, which are the three main alternatives of solution to problems discussed in the online forum. This idealisation might be due to the uncertainties and burdens inherent to HIV/AIDS, and the need for hope in definitive solutions to the multiple problems this population can face. While other studies have considered online support groups as a source of relief themselves, our findings suggests that participants use them as a mean to mainly look for answers, obtaining only references to other resources that could actually have those desired answers.},
     year = {2018}
    }
    

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