Support group

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See also: Peer support
In a support group, members provide each other with various types of help,
usually nonprofessional and nonmaterial, for a particular shared, usually
burdensome, characteristic. Members with the same issues can come together for
sharing coping strategies, to feel more empowered and for a sense of community.
The help may take the form of providing and evaluating relevant information,
relating personal experiences, listening to and accepting others' experiences,
providing sympathetic understanding and establishing social networks. A support
group may also work to inform the public or engage in advocacy.

Contents

 1History
 2Maintaining contact
 3Management by peers or professionals
 4Types
 5Online support groups
o 5.1Appropriate groups still difficult to find
o 5.2Benefits and pitfalls
o 5.3Mental health
 6See also
 7References
 8External links

History[edit]
Formal support groups may appear to be a modern phenomenon, but they
supplement traditional fraternal organizations such as Freemasonry in some
respects, and may build on certain supportive functions (formerly) carried out in
(extended) families.
Other types of groups formed to support causes, including causes outside of
themselves, are more often called advocacy groups, interest groups, lobby
groups, pressure groups or promotional groups. Trade unions and many
environmental groups, for example, are interest groups. The term support group in
this article refers to peer-to-peer support.

Maintaining contact[edit]
Support groups maintain interpersonal contact among their members in a variety of
ways. Traditionally, groups meet in person in sizes that allow conversational
interaction. Support groups also maintain contact through printed newsletters,
telephone chains, internet forums, and mailing lists. Some support groups are
exclusively online (see below).
Membership in some support groups is formally controlled, with admission
requirements and membership fees. Other groups are "open" and allow anyone to
attend an advertised meeting, for example, or to participate in an online forum.

Management by peers or professionals[edit]

A self-help support group is fully organized and managed by its members, who
are commonly volunteers and have personal experience in the subject of the
group's focus. These groups may also be referred to as fellowships, peer support
groups, lay organizations, mutual help groups, or mutual aid self-help groups. Most
common are 12-step groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous and self-help groups
for mental health.
Professionally operated support groups are facilitated by professionals who
most often do not share the problem of the members, [1][2] such as social workers,
psychologists, or members of the clergy. The facilitator controls discussions and
provides other managerial service. Such professionally operated groups are often
found in institutional settings, including hospitals, drug-treatment
centers and correctional facilities. These types of support groups may run for a
specified period of time, and an attendance fee is sometimes charged. [1]

Types[edit]
In the case of a disease, an identity or a pre-disposition, for example, a support
group will provide information, act as a clearing-house for experiences, and may
serve as a public relations voice for sufferers, other members, and their families.
Groups for high IQ or LGBTQIA+ individuals, for example, differ in their inclusivity,
but both connect people on the basis of identity or pre-disposition. [citation needed]
For more temporary concerns, such as bereavement or episodic medical
conditions, a support group may veer more towards helping those involved to
overcome or push through their condition/experience.
Some support groups and conditions for which such groups may be formed are:
 Addiction  Ex-gay grou
 AIDS  Families of a
 Alzheimer's  Fibromyalgi
 Alcoholics Anonymous  Gamblers A
 Anxiety disorders  Grief
 Asperger syndrome  Infertility
 Bereavement  Inflammator
 Borderline personality disorder  Irritable bow
 Breastfeeding  Mental Heal
 Brain attack or Brain trauma  Miscarriage
 Cancer  Mood disord
 Circadian rhythm disorders, e.g. DSPD, Non-24  Narcolepsy
  Codependency  Parkinson's
 Diabetes  Red Skin Sy
 Debtors Anonymous  Sexual abus
 Domestic violence  Sleep disord
 Eating disorders  Stroke
 Erythema nodosum  Stuttering
 Suicide prev
 Ulcerative c

Online support groups[edit]

Since at least 1982, the Internet has provided a venue for support groups.
Discussing online self-help support groups as the precursor to e-therapy, Martha
Ainsworth notes that "the enduring success of these groups has firmly established
the potential of computer-mediated communication to enable discussion of
sensitive personal issues."[3]
In one study of the effectiveness of online support groups among patients with
head and neck cancer, longer participation in online support groups were found to
result in a better health-related quality of life. [4]

Gerald Ganglbauer's Parkins(on)line

Appropriate groups still difficult to find[edit]

A researcher from University College London says the lack of qualitative
directories, and the fact that many support groups are not listed by search engines
can make finding an appropriate group difficult. [5] Even so, he does say that the
medical community needs "to understand the use of personal experiences rather
than an evidence-based approach... these groups also impact on how
individuals use information. They can help people learn how to find and use
information: for example, users swap Web sites and discuss Web sites."
It is not difficult to find an online support group, but it is hard to find a good one. In
the article What to Look for in Quality Online Support Groups, John M. Grohol
gives tips for evaluating online groups and states: "In good online support groups,
members stick around long after they've received the support they were seeking.
They stay because they want to give others what they themselves found in the
group. Psychologists call this high group cohesion, and it is the pinnacle of group
achievement."[6]
Benefits and pitfalls[edit]
Several studies have shown the importance of the Internet in providing social
support, particularly to groups with chronic health problems. [7] Especially in cases of
uncommon ailments, a sense of community and understanding in spite of great
geographical distances can be important, in addition to sharing of knowledge.
Online support groups, online communities for those affected by a common
problem, give mutual support and provide information, two often inseparable
features. They are, according to Henry Potts of University College London, "an
overlooked resource for patients." Many studies have looked at the content of
messages, while what matters is the effect that participation in the group has on
the individual. Potts complains that research on these groups has lagged behind,
particularly on the groups which are set up by the people with the problems, rather
than by researchers and healthcare professionals. User-defined groups can share
the sort of practical knowledge that healthcare professionals can overlook, and
they also impact on how individuals find, interpret and use information. [5]
There are many benefits to online support groups that have been found through
research studies. Although online support group users are not required to be
anonymous, a study conducted by Baym (2010) finds that anonymity is beneficial
to those who are lonely or anxious. This does not pertain to some people seeking
support groups, because not all are lonely and/or anxious, but for those who are,
online support groups are a great outlet where one can feel comfortable honestly
expressing themselves because the other users do not know who they are.
A study was conducted by Walther and Boyd (2000) and they found a common
trend to why people find online support groups appealing. First, the social distance
between members online reduced embarrassment and they appreciated the
greater range of expertise offered in the larger online social network. Next, they
found that anonymity increased one's confidence in providing support to others and
decreased embarrassment. The users of the social support websites were more
comfortable being able to reread and edit their comments and discussion forum
entries before sending them, and they have access to the website any time during
the day. Each of these characteristics of online support groups are not offered
when going to an in-person support group.
In a study conducted by Gunther Eysenbach, John Powell, Marina Englesakis,
Carlos Rizo, and Anita Stern (2004), the researchers found it difficult to draw
conclusions on the effectiveness of online peer-to-peer support groups. In online
support groups, people must have the desire to support and help each other, and
many times participants go on the sites in order to get help themselves or are
limited to a certain subgroup.
An additional benefit to online support groups is that participation is asynchronous.
This means that it is not necessary for all participants to be logged into the forum
simultaneously in order to communicate. An experience or question can be posted
and others can answer questions or comment on posts whenever they are logged
in and have an appropriate response. This characteristic allows for participation
and mass communication without having to worry about time constraints.
Additionally, there are 24-hour chat rooms and spaces for focused conversation at
all times of the day or night. This allows users to get the support they need
whenever they need it, while remaining comfortable and, if they so wish,
anonymous.
Mental health[edit]
Although there has been relatively little research on the effectiveness of online
support groups in mental health,[8] there is some evidence that online support
groups can be beneficial.[9] Large randomised controlled trials have both found
positive effects[10] and failed to find positive effects.[8]

See also[edit]
 Group psychotherapy
 Self-help groups for mental health
 List of Twelve-Step groups
 Category:Online support groups

References[edit]
1. ^ Jump up to:    APA Dictionary of Psychology, 1st ed., Gary
a b

R. VandenBos, ed., Washington: American

Psychological Association, 2007.
2. ^ Rosenstein, D. & Yopp, J. (2018).  The Group: Seven
Widowed Fathers Reimagine Life. Oxford University
Press.  ISBN  978-0-190-64956-2.
3. ^ Ainsworth, Martha. "E-Therapy: History and Survey".
Retrieved  15 April 2008.
4. ^ Algtewi, Eamar; Owens, Janine; Baker, Sarah R. (17
April 2017). "Online support groups for head and neck
cancer and health-related quality of life".  Quality of Life
Research. 26 (9): 2351–2362.  doi:10.1007/s11136-
017-1575-8.  ISSN  0962-9343. PMC  5548849.  PMID  2
8417218.
5. ^ Jump up to:a b Potts HW.  "Online support groups: An
overlooked resource for patients"  (PDF). He@lth
Information on the Internet. 44 (1): 6–8. Archived
from the original  (PDF) on 9 March 2006.
6. ^ Grohol, John M. (May 2004).  "What to Look for in
Quality Online Support Groups". Archived from  the
original  on 14 January 2010. Retrieved  15 April 2008.
7. ^ Powell, John; Aileen Clarke (2002). "The WWW of
the World Wide Web: Who, What, and Why?". Journal
of Medical Internet Research. 4  (1):
e4. doi:10.2196/jmir.4.1.e4. PMC  1761925.  PMID  119
56036.
8. ^ Jump up to:a b Dean, J; Potts, HWW; Barker, C
(2016). "Direction to an Internet Support Group
Compared With Online Expressive Writing for People
With Depression And Anxiety: A Randomized
Trial". JMIR Mental Health. 3  (2):
e12. doi:10.2196/mental.5133.  PMC 4887661. PMID 2
7189142.
9. ^ Griffiths, KM; Calear, AL; Banfield, M
(2009). "Systematic review on Internet Support Groups
(ISGs) and depression (1): Do ISGs reduce depressive
symptoms?". J Med Internet Res.  11  (3):
 e40. doi:10.2196/jmir.1270. PMC  2802256.  PMID  197
93719.
10. ^ Griffiths, KM; Mackinnon, AJ; Crisp, DA; Christensen,
H; Bennett, K; Farrer, L (2012). "The effectiveness of
an online support group for members of the community
with depression: a randomised controlled trial".  PLOS
One. 7  (12):
e53244.  Bibcode:2012PLoSO...753244G.  doi:10.1371/j
ournal.pone.0053244.  PMC 3532446. PMID 23285271
.

External links[edit]
 Support groups at Curlie
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Psychotherapy (list)
Categories: 
 Aftermath of war
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 Self-care
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