How Online Communities of People With Long-Term Conditions Function and Evolve: Network Analysis of the Structure and Dynamics of the Asthma UK and British Lung Foundation Online Communities.
Sagar JoglekarNishanth R SastryNeil S CoulsonStephanie Jane Caroline TaylorAnita PatelRobbie DuschinskyAmrutha AnandMatt Jameson EvansChristopher J GriffithsAziz SheikhPietro PanzarasaAnna De SimoniPublished in: Journal of medical Internet research (2018)
In this study, we uncover key structural properties related to the way users interact and sustain online health communities. Superusers' engagement plays a fundamental sustaining role and deserves research attention. Further studies are needed to explore network determinants of the effectiveness of online engagement concerning health-related outcomes. In resource-constrained health care systems, scaling up online communities may offer a potentially accessible, wide-reaching and cost-effective intervention facilitating greater levels of self-management.
Keyphrases
- social media
- health information
- healthcare
- randomized controlled trial
- public health
- chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
- systematic review
- mental health
- type diabetes
- working memory
- cross sectional
- adipose tissue
- air pollution
- cystic fibrosis
- lung function
- insulin resistance
- weight loss
- health insurance
- network analysis
- human health