Family eJournal: benefits of online guided group journaling for women

Journal of Public Mental Health,Volume 17, Issue 3, Page 135-141, September 2018. Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the benefits of online guided group journaling for an individual ’s mental health. The authors focused on a specific social networking platform called Family eJournal. Design/methodology/approach In total, 51 female participants were recruited from an American university with an average age of 20 years. Participants completed an online survey called the Relat ionship and Lifestyle Questionnaire. The questionnaire utilized two subscales, the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (Diener et al., 1985) and the Depression and Anxiety Stress Scale (Lovibond& Lovibond, 1995). In addition, the questionnaire also measured several items related to an individual ’s health choices such as smoking or dieting. Half of the participants in the study were randomly assigned to the Family eJournal user group. Findings Following the ten-week time period, the Family eJournal group reported significantly higher social support and lower scores of depression compare d to the non-Family eJournal control group. However, there was no difference between groups in regard to anxiety or health choices. Implications of online group journaling and future directions are discussed. Research limitations/implications Current findings suggest that online journal sharing ma y provide a buffer from depression. For those who experience a negative perception of so...
Source: Journal of Public Mental Health - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research