Dataset Information

Differential Patterns of Social Media Use Associated with Loneliness and Health Outcomes in Selected Socioeconomic Groups.

ABSTRACT: Loneliness has emerged as a chronic and persistent problem for a considerable fraction of the general population in the developed world. Concurrently, use of online social media by the same societies has steadily increased over the past two decades. The present study analyzed a recent large country-wide loneliness survey of 20,096 adults in the US using an unsupervised approach for systematic identification of clusters of respondents in terms of their social media use and representation among different socioeconomic subgroups. We studied the underlying population heterogeneity with a computational pipeline that was developed to gain insights into cluster- or group-specific patterns of loneliness. In particular, distributions of high loneliness were observed in groups of female users of Facebook and YouTube of certain age, race, marital, and socioeconomic status. For instance, among the group of predominantly YouTube users, we noted that non-Hispanic white female respondents of age 25-44 years who have high school or less education level and are single or never married have more significant high loneliness distribution. In fact, their high loneliness scores also seem to be associated with self-reported poorer physical and mental health outcomes.

Supplementary information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s41347-021-00208-4.

SUBMITTER: Gharani P

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8121492 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Differential Patterns of Social Media Use Associated with Loneliness and Health Outcomes in Selected Socioeconomic Groups.

Gharani Pedram P Ray Sumanta S Aruru Meghana M Pyne Saumyadipta S

Journal of technology in behavioral science 20210514 3

Loneliness has emerged as a chronic and persistent problem for a considerable fraction of the general population in the developed world. Concurrently, use of online social media by the same societies has steadily increased over the past two decades. The present study analyzed a recent large country-wide loneliness survey of 20,096 adults in the US using an unsupervised approach for systematic identification of clusters of respondents in terms of their social media use and representation among di ...[more]

PMID: 34027034

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Project description:Individual burden and cost of hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS)-a medical condition characterized by acute kidney failure-can be substantial when accounting for long-term health outcomes (LTHOs). Because of the low incidence of HUS, evaluation of associated LTHOs is often restricted to physician and outbreak cohorts, both of which may not be representative of all HUS cases. This exploratory study recruited participants from private social media support groups for families of HUS cases to identify potential LTHOs and costs of HUS that are not currently measured. Additionally, this study sought to identify case characteristics that may confound or modify these LTHOs and costs of HUS. Respondents self-selected to complete an online cross-sectional survey on acute and chronic illness history, treatments, and public health follow-up for HUS cases. Posttraumatic stress among respondents (typically case parents) was also evaluated. Responses were received for 74 HUS cases from 71 families representing all geographic regions, and levels of urbanicity within the US self-reported symptoms were typical for HUS, while 35.1% of cases reported antibiotic treatment at any point during the acute illness. Hospital transfers were reported by 71.6% of cases introducing possible delays to care. More than 70% of cases reported experiencing at least one LTHO, with 45% of cases reporting renal sequelae. Posttraumatic stress symptoms were frequently reported by respondents indirectly affected by HUS. Potentially large economic costs that are not addressed in existing analyses were identified including both financial and more general welfare losses (lost utility). While biases in the study design limit the generalizability of results to all HUS cases, this study provides new insights into unmeasured LTHOs and costs associated with HUS. These results suggest that robustly designed cohort studies on HUS should include measures of psychosocial impacts on both the affected individual and their family members.

Project description:BackgroundSocial media has been widely adopted by young adults, consequently health researchers are looking for ways to leverage this engagement with social media for the delivery of interventions and health promotion campaigns. Weight gain and sub-optimal dietary choices are common in young adults, and social media may be a potential tool to facilitate and support healthier choices.MethodsWe conducted a mixed-methods systematic review of studies examining social media use for nutrition-related outcomes in young adults. Seven databases [EBscohost, ERIC, ProQuest Central, PubMed, Ovid, Scopus, and Emerald] were systematically searched; 1225 abstracts were screened, and 47 full-text articles were assessed for eligibility. Study designs included both quantitative, such as experimental and observational studies, and qualitative, such as focus groups and interviews, approaches. Quality was assessed using the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool. Quantitative and qualitative results were examined separately, and then synthesized.ResultsTwenty-one studies were included although their use of social media was highly variable. The main purpose of social media was to provide information and social support to participants. In the nine randomized controlled trials, social media was used as one aspect of a multi-faceted intervention. Interventions had a positive statistically significant impact on nutritional outcomes in 1/9 trials. Engagement with the social media component of interventions varied, from 3 to 69%. Young adults appear to be open to receiving healthy eating and recipe tips through social media, however, they are reluctant to share personal weight-related information on their online social networks.ConclusionsInformation-dissemination is now an acceptable use of social media by young adults. Using social media effectively for social support, either via private groups or public pages, requires careful evaluation as its effectiveness is yet to be demonstrated in experimental designs. Concerns about public social media use may be a contributing factor to poor engagement with social media in research intervention studies aimed at influencing weight. Future research should consider how to best engage with young adults using social media, how to more effectively use social media to support young adults and to facilitate social and peer-to-peer support in making healthier choices.

Dataset Information

Differential Patterns of Social Media Use Associated with Loneliness and Health Outcomes in Selected Socioeconomic Groups.

Supplementary information

Publications

Differential Patterns of Social Media Use Associated with Loneliness and Health Outcomes in Selected Socioeconomic Groups.

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