Normalizing Anxiety on Social Media Increases Self-Diagnosis of Anxiety: The Mediating Effect of Identification (But Not Stigma)

References

• Abbott, D., Shirali, Y., Haws, J. K., & Lack, C. W. (2017). Biobehavioral assessment of the anxiety disorders: Current progress and future directions. World Journal of Psychiatry, 7(3), 133–147. doi:10.5498/wjp.v7.i3.133
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Abrams, D. (1992). Processes of social identification. In G. M. Breakwell (Ed.), Social psychology of identity and the self-concept. Academic Press, Elsevier.
   Google Scholar
• Beiter, R., Nash, R., McCrady, M., Rhoades, D., Linscomb, M., Clarahan, M., & Sammut, S. (2015). The prevalence and correlates of depression, anxiety, and stress in a sample of college students. Journal of Affective Disorders, 173, 90–96. doi:10.1016/j.jad.2014.10.054
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Berger, J. (2014). Word-of-mouth and interpersonal communication: An organizing framework and directions for future research. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 24(4), 586–607. doi:10.1016/j.jcps.2014.05.002
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Block, M., Stern, D. B., Raman, K., Lee, S., Carey, J. … Breiter, H. C. (2014). The relationship between self-report of depression and media usage. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, (8). doi:10.3389/fnhum.2014.00712
   Google Scholar
• Cano, I., Best, D., Beckwith, M., Phillips, L. A., Hamilton, P., & Sloan, J. (2020). Stigma related to health conditions and offending behaviors: Social distance among students of health and social sciences. Stigma and Health, 5, 38–52. doi:10.1037/sah0000165
   Google Scholar
• Charlton, B. G. (2005). Self-management of psychiatric symptoms using over-the-counter (OTC) psychopharmacology: The S-DTM therapeutic model – self-diagnosis, self-treatment, self-monitoring. Medical Hypotheses, 65(5), 823–828. doi:10.1016/j.mehy.2005.07.013
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Chisholm, D., Sweeny, K., Sheehan, P., Rasmussen, B., Smit, F., Cuijpers, P., & Saxena, S. (2016). Scaling-up treatment of depression and anxiety: A global return on investment analysis. The Lancet Psychiatry, 3(5), 415–424. doi:10.1016/s22150366(16)30024-4
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Cohen, J. (2001). Defining identification: A theoretical look at the identification of audiences with media character. Mass Communication & Society, 4(3), 245–264. doi:10.1207/S15327825MCS0403_01
   Google Scholar
• Corrigan, P. (2004). How stigma interferes with mental health care. American Psychologist, 59(7), 614–625. doi:10.1037/0003-066X.59.7.614
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Fishbein, M., & Cappella, J. N. (2006). The role of theory in developing effective health communications. Journal of Communication, 56(suppl_1), 1–17. doi:10.1111/j.1460-2466.2006.00280.x
   Google Scholar
• Fritz, M. S., & MacKinnon, D. P. (2007). Required sample size to detect the mediated effect. Psychological Science, 18(3), 223–239. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9280.2007.01882.x
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Hathaway, A. D., Comeau, N. C., & Erickson, P. G. (2011). Cannabis normalization and stigma: Contemporary practices of moral regulation. Criminology & Criminal Justice, 11(5), 451–469. doi:10.1177/1748895811415345
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Hayes, A. F. (2018). Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis: A regression-based approach. New York, NY: The Guilford Press.
   Google Scholar
• Hayes, A. F., & Krippendorff, K. (2007). Answering the call for a standard reliability measure for coding data. Communication Methods and Measures, 1(1), 77–89. doi:10.1080/19312450709336664
   Google Scholar
• Henderson, C., Evans-Lacko, S., & Thornicroft, G. (2013). Mental illness stigma, help seeking, and public health programs. American Journal of Public Health, 103(5), 777–780. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2012.301056
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Hovenkamp-Hermelink, J., Veen, D. V. D., Voshaar, R. O., Batelaan, N., Penninx, B., Schoevers, R., & Riese, H. (2019). Anxiety sensitivity: Longitudinal stability and association with anxiety severity. Scientific Reports, 9(1). doi:10.1038/s41598-019-39931-7
   PubMedGoogle Scholar
• Hudders, L., & De Jans, S. (2021). Gender effects in influencer marketing: An experimental study on the efficacy of endorsements by same vs other-gender social media influencers on Instagram. International Journal of Advertising, 41(1), 128–149. doi:10.1080/02650487.2021.1997455
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Ji, Y. (2022). When distal group norms work: Testing effectiveness of distal norm-based messages as a function of desirability-motivated identification. Communication Studies, 73(1), 36–52. doi:10.1080/10510974.2021.1972018
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Joachim, G., & Acorn, S. (2001). Living with chronic illness: The interface of stigma and normalization. Canadian Journal of Nursing Research, 32, 37–48.
   Google Scholar
• Khan, A. W., Pandey, J., Cohl, H. S., & Gipp, B. Semantic preserving bijective mappings for expressions involving special functions between computer algebra systems and document preparation systems. Aslib Journal of Information Management, 71(3). doi:10.1108/AJIM-08-2021-0222
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Kresovich, A. (2022). The influence of pop songs referencing anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation on college students’ mental health empathy, stigma, and behavioral intentions. Health Communication, 37(5), 617–627. doi:10.1080/10410236.2020.1859724
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Lawlor, A., & Kirakowski, J. (2017). Claiming someone else's pain: A grounded theory analysis of online community participants experiences of Munchausen by internet. Computers in Human Behavior, 74, 101–111. doi:10.1016/j.chb.2017.03.070
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Lawrence, R. E., Rasinski, K. A., Yoon, J. D., & Curlin, F. A. (2015). Psychiatrists’ and primary care physicians’ beliefs about overtreatment of depression and anxiety. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 203(2), 120–125. doi:10.1097/NMD.0000000000000247
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Ledford, V., Lim, J. R., Namkoong, K., Chen, J., & Qin, Y. (2021). The influence of stigmatizing messages on danger appraisal: Examining the model of stigma communication for opioid-related outcomes. Health Communication, 37(14), 1765–1777. doi:10.1080/10410236.2021.1920710
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Lewis, N. (2015). Examining normative influence in persuasive health messages: The moderating role of identification with other parents. International Journal of Communication, 9, 3000–3019.
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Louis, W., Davies, S., Smith, J., & Terry, D. (2007). Pizza and pop and the student identity: The role of referent group norms in healthy and unhealthy eating. The Journal of Social Psychology, 147(1), 57–74. doi:10.3200/SOCP.147.1.57-74
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Love, K. (2018). Everyone is going through something. The Players’ Tribune. https://www.theplayerstribune.com/en-us/articles/kevin-love-everyone-is-going-through-something
   Google Scholar
• Martin, A., Chilton, J., Paasche, C., Nabatkhorian, N., Gortler, H. … Neary, S. (2020). Shared living experiences by physicians have a positive impact on mental health attitudes and stigma among medical students: A mixed-methods study. Journal of Medical Education and Curricular Development, 7, 2382120520968072. doi:10.1177/2382120520968072
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• May, C., & Finch, T. (2009). Implementing, embedding, and integrating practices: An outline of normalization process theory. Sociology, 43(3), 535–554. doi:10.1177/0038038509103208
   Google Scholar
• Mellifont, D., & Smith-Merry, J. (2015). The anxious times: An analysis of the representation of anxiety disorders in the Austrian newspaper, 2000-2015. Asia Pacific Media Educator, 25(2), 278–296. doi:10.1177/1326365X15604937
   Google Scholar
• Mou, Y., & Shen, F. Y. (2018). (Potential) patients like me: Testing the effects of user-generated health content on social media. Chinese Journal of Communication, 11(2), 186–201. doi:10.1080/17544750.2017.1386221
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Narin, R. G., & Coverdale, J. H. (2005). People never see us living well: An appraisal of the personal stories about mental illness in a prospective print media sample. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 39(4), 281–287. doi:10.1080/j.1440-1614.2005.01566.x
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Naslund, J. A., Aschbrenner, K. A., Marsch, L. A., & Bartels, S. J. (2016). The future of mental health care: Peer-to-peer support and social media. Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences, 25(2), 113–122. doi:10.1017/S2045796015001067
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• National Institutes of Mental Health. (2017). Any anxiety disorder. https://wwww.nihm.nih.gov/health/statistics/major-depression.shtml
   Google Scholar
• Nevin, R. L. (2009). Low validity of self-report in identifying recent mental health diagnosis among U.S. service members completing pre-deployment health assessment (PreDHA) and deployed to Afghanistan, 2007: A retrospective cohort study. BMC Public Health, 9(1), 376. doi:10.1186/1471-2458-9-376
   PubMedGoogle Scholar
• Ociskova, M., Prasko, J., & Sedlackova, Z. (2013). Stigma and self-stigma in patients with anxiety disorders. Act Nerv Super Rediviva, 55, 12–18.
   Google Scholar
• Parrott, S., Billings, A. C., Buzzelli, N., & Towery, N. (2021). “We all go through it”: Media depictions of mental illness disclosures from star athletes DeMar DeRozan and Kevin love. Communication & Sport, 9(1), 33–54. doi:10.1177/2167479519852605
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Parrott, S., Billings, A. C., Hakim, S. D., & Gentile, P. (2020). From #endthestigma to #realman: Stigma-challenging social media responses to NBA players’ mental health disclosures. Communication Reports, 33(3), 148–160. doi:10.1080/08934215.2020.1811365
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Pavlova, A., & Berkers, P. (2020). “Mental health” as defined by twitter: Frames, emotions, stigma. Health Communication, 37(5), 637–647. doi:10.1080/10410236.2020.1862396
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Ponte, K. (2021). Overcoming stigma: Helping people accept their mental illness diagnosis. National Alliance on Mental Illness. https://www.nami.org/Blogs/NAMI-Blog/October-2021/Overcoming-Stigma-Helping-People-Accept-Their-Mental-Illness-Diagnoses
   Google Scholar
• Rhodes, N., & Ellithorpe, M. E. (2016). Laughing at risk: Sitcom laugh tracks communicate norms for behavior. Media Psychology, 19(3), 359–380. doi:10.1080/15213269.2015.1090908
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Rimal, R. N., & Lapinski, M. K. (2015). A re-explication of social norms, ten years later. Communication Theory, 25(4), 393–409. doi:10.1111/comt.12080
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Rubin, V. L. (2019). Disinformation and misinformation triangle. Journal of Documentation, 75(5), 1013–1034. doi:10.1108/jd-12-2018-0209
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Sadagheyani, H. E., & Tatari, F. (2021). Investigating the role of social media on mental health. Mental Health and Social Inclusion, 25(1), 41–51. doi:10.1108/MHSI-06-2020-0039
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Schofield, P. E., Pattison, P. E., Hill, D. J., & Borland, R. (2001). The influence of group identification on the adoption of peer group smoking norms. Psychology & Health, 16(1), 1–16. doi:10.1080/08870440108405486
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Schulze, B., & Angermeyer, M. C. (2003). Subjective experiences of stigma: A focus group study of schizophrenic patients, their relatives, and mental health professionals. Social Science Medicine, 56(2), 299–312. doi:10.1016/S0277-9536(02)00028-X
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Stephan, S. H., Weist, M., Kataoka, S., Adelsheim, S., & Mills, C. (2007). Transformation of children’s mental health services: The role of school mental health. Psychiatric Services, 58(10), 1330–1338. doi:10.1176/ps.2007.58.10.1330
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Terry, D. J., & Hogg, M. A. (1996). Group norms and the attitude-behavior relationship: A role for group identification. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 22(8), 776–793. doi:10.1177/0146167296228002
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Wang, X. (2013). Applying the integrative model of behavioral prediction and attitude functions in the context of social media use while viewing mediated sports. Computers in Human Behavior, 29(4), 1538–1545. doi:10.1016/j.chb.2013.01.031
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Watkins, J. T., & Rush, A. J. (1983). Cognitive response test. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 7(5), 425–435. doi:10.1007/BF01187170
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Weisbuch, M., Ivcevic, Z., & Ambady, N. (2009). On being liked on the web and in the “real world”: Consistency in first impressions across personal webpages and spontaneous behavior. Journal of Experimental and Social Psychology, 45(3), 573–576. doi:10.1016/j.jesp.2008.12.009
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Weiste, E., Stevanovic, M., Valkeapaa, T., Valkiaranta, K., & Lindholm, C. (2021). Discussing mental health difficulties in a “diagnosis free zone”. Social Science & Medicine, 289, 114364. doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2021.114364
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Whiteford, H. A., Ferrari, A. J., Degenhardt, L., Feigin, V., Vos, T., & Forloni, G. (2015). The global burden of mental, neurological and substance use disorders: An analysis from the global burden of disease study 2010. PLoS One, 10(2), e0116820. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0116820
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar