RESUMO
Evidence suggests that digital peer support can be valuable for individuals struggling with their wellbeing, particularly those who do not feel able to or do not want to engage with other services. The current study explores the experience of young adults engaging with a digital peer support smartphone app. Interviews were conducted with 11 young adults aged 18-25. Reflexive thematic analysis was used and five themes were developed from the data: 1) Finding comfort in familiar and friendly digital spaces; 2) Developing coping and support skills through digital peer support; 3) The value of shared experiences; 4) Needing to 'pull your weight' but being scared of causing harm; 5) The limits of digital peer support. We found that participants valued the sense of community and feelings of relief and validation elicited from sharing relatable experiences with peers. They also believed they had developed skills in supporting themselves and others both within and external to the app. However, it was mainly perceived as a space for venting and may not succeed in delivering benefits beyond this, such as in reducing symptoms of poor mental health or helping people get to the root of issues. Moreover, participants reported a pressure to respond and anxieties around exacerbating someone's difficult feelings. Providing training and supervision to peers to help them feel confident and safe when supporting others may help to further the benefits of peer support, and a greater emphasis on boundaries within digital peer support may alleviate some anxieties and pressure.
RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Self-harm and suicide are major public health concerns worldwide, with attention focused on the web environment as a helpful or harmful influence. Longitudinal research on self-harm and suicide-related internet use is limited, highlighting a paucity of evidence on long-term patterns and effects of engaging with such content. OBJECTIVE: This study explores the experiences of people engaging with self-harm or suicide content over a 6-month period. METHODS: This study used qualitative and digital ethnographic methods longitudinally, including one-to-one interviews at 3 time points to explore individual narratives. A trajectory analysis approach involving 4 steps was used to interpret the data. RESULTS: The findings from 14 participants established the web-based journey of people who engage with self-harm or suicide content. In total, 5 themes were identified: initial interactions with self-harm or suicide content, changes in what self-harm or suicide content people engage with and where, changes in experiences of self-harm or suicide behaviors associated with web-based self-harm or suicide content engagement, the disengagement-reengagement cycle, and future perspectives on web-based self-harm or suicide content engagement. Initial engagements were driven by participants seeking help, often when offline support had been unavailable. Some participants' exposure to self-harm and suicide content led to their own self-harm and suicide behaviors, with varying patterns of change over time. Notably, disengagement from web-based self-harm and suicide spaces served as a protective measure for all participants, but the pull of familiar content resulted in only brief periods of disconnection. Participants also expressed future intentions to continue returning to these self-harm and suicide web-based spaces, acknowledging the nonlinear nature of their own recovery journey and aiming to support others in the community. Within the themes identified in this study, narratives revealed that participants' behavior was shaped by cognitive flexibility and rigidity, metacognitive abilities, and digital expertise. Opportunities for behavior change arose during periods of cognitive flexibility prompted by life events, stressors, and shifts in mental health. Participants sought diverse and potentially harmful content during challenging times but moved toward recovery-oriented engagements in positive circumstances. Metacognitive and digital efficacy skills also played a pivotal role in participants' control of web-based interactions, enabling more effective management of content or platforms or sites that posed potential harms. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated the complexity of web-based interactions, with beneficial and harmful content intertwined. Participants who demonstrated metacognition and digital efficacy had better control over web-based engagements. Some attributed these skills to study processes, including taking part in reflective diaries, showing the potential of upskilling users. This study also highlighted how participants remained vulnerable by engaging with familiar web-based spaces, emphasizing the responsibility of web-based industry leaders to develop tools that empower users to enhance their web-based safety.