What's On Your Mind: Reactivity and Helping Behaviors Towards Depressed Facebook Users

Abstract

Objective: Depression affects people world-wide, but what happens when people express depression online? The current study examined online and offline reactivity as well as likelihood to help depressed Facebook users in the context of Facebook’s positivity norm. Online reactivity was measured as the likelihood to engage with a profile using Facebook’s communication tools. Offline reactivity was measured through contact such as texting or calling the user and through helping behavior such as taking them to the Emergency Room. Differences in reactivity based on profile gender and expression of depression were evaluated. Knowledge of using Facebook’s new suicide reporting option was examined. Other factors impacting a user’s tendency to respond to depressed individuals were also considered. Method: A sample of 97 female undergraduate students at the University of Michigan-Dearborn participated in this online study. The participants completed the Social Media Use Integration Scale (Jenkins-Guarnieri, Wright, & Johnson, 2013) and the Attitudes to and Stereotypes of Mental Health Measure (Aromaa, Tolvanen, Tuulari, & Wahlbeck, 2011). All participants viewed a fictitious positive Facebook profile (either male or female), then were randomly assigned to view either a profile where the posts were initially positive but became negative or a profile that was consistently negative. The participants rated the likelihood they would respond online and offline to each profile. Results: While people responded to the depressed individuals via online and offline methods, participants were unlikely to help them. Participants responded more offline to the negative than the positive profiles. Participants were more likely to respond in general to the mixed than the depressed profiles. Participants’ response to the profile was not impacted by the gender of the individual portrayed in the profile. Participants did not know how to report suicidal content utilizing the newest update. Conclusion: Profiles that violate Facebook’s positivity norms receive different online reactions from their social network with regard to contacting the individual in a public or private manner. People who violate these norms did not receive offers of help from their social networks. They did receive attention through personal interaction, indicating an effect of online posts affecting people offline.