Making and Receiving Offers of Help on Social Media Following Disaster Predict Posttraumatic Growth but not Posttraumatic Stress

Abstract

Objectives: Social media provides an opportunity to engage in social contact and to give and receive help by means of online social networks. Social support following trauma exposure, even in a virtual community, may reduce feelings of helplessness and isolation, and, therefore, reduce posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTS), and increase posttraumatic growth (PTG). The current study aimed to assess whether giving and/or receiving offers of help by means of social media following large community fires predicted PTS and/or PTG. Methods: A convenience sample of 212 adults living in communities that were affected by large-scale community fires in Israel (November 2016) completed questionnaires on giving and receiving offers of help by means of social media within 1 mo of the fire (W1), and the PTSD checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5) and PTG questionnaire (PTGI-SF), 4 mo after the fire (W2). Results: Regression analyses showed that, after controlling for age, gender, and distance from fire, offering help by means of social media predicted higher PTG (β = 0.22; t = 3.18; P < 0.01), as did receiving offers of help by means of social media (β = 0.18; t = 2.64; P < 0.01). There were no significant associations between giving and/or receiving offers of help and PTS. Conclusions: Connecting people to social media networks may help in promoting posttraumatic growth, although might not impact on posttraumatic symptoms. This is one of the first studies to highlight empirically the advantages of social media in the aftermath of trauma exposure.

Media Use During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Cross-sectional Study

“…In the early days of the pandemic and for quite some time, governmental authorities have broadcasted bleak news updates through the media daily (eg, [ 1 , 2 ]) and have urged people to stay connected to each other virtually to offset the absence of social contacts (eg, [ 3 ]). While some literature suggests that using social media platforms for support is salutogenic (ie, supporting health and well-being) [ 4 , 5 ], others suggest that media consumption involves repeated exposure to aversive content inducing pathogenic effects, including trauma- and stressor-related (TSR) symptoms typically associated with adjustment disorder or posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), as per the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (Fifth Edition) [ 6 - 8 ].…”