ArticleBMC psychiatry2011
Explicit and implicit information needs of people with depression: a qualitative investigation of problems reported on an online depression support forum.
Article in BMC psychiatry, 2011. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 43 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
43 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 114 citations in OpenAlex.
- Information and decision-making needs among people with mental disorders: a systematic review of the literature.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2015Pooled it
- Using Natural Language Processing to Describe the Use of an Online Community for Abortion During 2022: Dynamic Topic Modeling Analysis of Reddit Posts.JMIR infodemiology · 2025Article
- Self-management strategies and care needs of patients with persistent depressive disorder and their informal caregivers: a multi-perspectives qualitative interview study.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Article
- Online Depression Communities as a Complementary Approach to Improving the Attitudes of Patients With Depression Toward Medication Adherence: Cross-Sectional Survey Study.Journal of medical Internet research · 2024Article
- Validity and reliability of the Depression Information Needs Scale among the Iranian general population.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2024Article
- Exploring Language Used in Posts on r/birthcontrol: Case Study Using Data From Reddit Posts and Natural Language Processing to Advance Contraception Research.Journal of medical Internet research · 2023Article
- Working alliance in low-intensity internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy for depression in primary care in Spain: A qualitative study.Frontiers in psychology · 2023Article
- Mental toll on working women during the COVID-19 pandemic: An exploratory study using Reddit data.PloS one · 2023Article
- Predicting Patient Satisfaction With Medications for Treating Opioid Use Disorder: Case Study Applying Natural Language Processing to Reviews of Methadone and Buprenorphine/Naloxone on Health-Related Social Media.JMIR infodemiology · 2023Article
- Meeting the Unmet Needs of Individuals With Mental Disorders: Scoping Review on Peer-to-Peer Web-Based Interactions.JMIR mental health · 2022Article
- Information needs and sources of information among people with depression and anxiety: a scoping review.BMC psychiatry · 2022Article
- Internet Use among Patients with Schizophrenia and Depression.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Article
- Emotional Contagion in the Online Depression Community.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Article
- Social Media and Health: Emerging Trends and Future Directions for Research on Young Adults.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Article
- Information Needs About Cancer Treatment, Fertility, and Pregnancy: Qualitative Descriptive Study of Reddit Threads.JMIR cancer · 2020Article
- Insights on mental health when living with rheumatoid arthritis: a descriptive qualitative study of threads on the Reddit website.BMC rheumatology · 2020Article
- A Comparative Study of Online Depression Communities in China.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2020Article
- Multidimensional Feature Classification of the Health Information Needs of Patients With Hypertension in an Online Health Community Through Analysis of 1000 Patient Question Records: Observational Study.Journal of medical Internet research · 2020Observational
- "r/Thritis", Pregnancy, and Parenting: A Qualitative Descriptive Study of Reddit Forums to Explore Information Needs and Concerns of Women With Rheumatoid Arthritis.ACR open rheumatology · 2019Article
- Influence of Enthusiastic Language on the Credibility of Health Information and the Trustworthiness of Science Communicators: Insights From a Between-Subject Web-Based Experiment.Interactive journal of medical research · 2019Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundHealth management is impeded when consumers do not possess adequate knowledge about their illness. At a public health level, consumer knowledge about depression is particularly important because depression is highly prevalent and causes substantial disability and burden. However, currently little is known about the information needs of people with depression. This study aimed to investigate the explicit and implicit information needs of users of an online depression support forum.
methodsA sample of 2680 posts was systematically selected from three discussion forums on an online depression bulletin board (blueboard.anu.edu.au). Data were examined for evidence of requests for information (reflecting explicit needs) and reports of past or current problems (implicit needs). Thematic analysis was conducted using a data-driven inductive approach with the assistance of NVivo 7, and instances of questions and people reporting particular types of problems were recorded.
resultsA total of 134 participants with personal experience of depression contributed to the data analysed. Six broad themes represented participant queries and reported problems: Understanding depression; disclosure and stigma; medication; treatment and services; coping with depression; and comorbid health problems. A variety of specific needs were evident within these broad thematic areas. Some people (n = 46) expressed their information needs by asking direct questions (47 queries) but the majority of needs were expressed implicitly (351 problems) by the 134 participants. The most evident need for information related to coping with depression and its consequences, followed by topics associated with medication, treatment and services.
conclusionsPeople with depression have substantial unmet information needs and require strategies to deal with the difficulties they face. They require access to high quality and relevant online resources and professionals; thus, there is a need to rectify current gaps in the provision of information and limitations of dissemination. Greater knowledge about depression and its treatment is also needed at the general community level.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.