Abstract
Researchers have observed gender differences in the frequency of emotion language used in cancer forums, with men more likely to seek medical information and women more likely to seek social and emotional support (Blank, Schmidt, Vangsness, Monteiro, & Santagata, 2010; Seale, Ziebland, & Charteris-Black, 2006). The aim of this article was to investigate Internet support groups to examine the support mechanisms that men employed when deciding whether or not to have a testicular implant. The four longest threads about prostheses were taken from four separate testicular cancer online support forums (totaling a number of 129 posts). A discursive approach (Edwards & Potter, 2001) was employed in order to consider what support mechanisms were employed by men. Findings illustrate that men employed a number of discursive strategies in "doing" support, including assessments, attending to issues of accountability, humor, providing alternative information, constructing decisions as personal choices, reconstituting normality, and sanctioning "emotional" talk. The psychological benefits of online homosocial support are discussed, and it is suggested that clinicians recommend Internet support groups to men with testicular cancer in order to start the psychological healing process.
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