Displayed Depression Symptoms on Facebook at Two Time Points: Content Analysis.

Megan A Moreno,Molly Adrian,Alina Arseniev-Koehler,Megan Wilt,Quintin Gaus,Ann Vanderstoep,Adrienne Ton

doi:10.2196/20179

Abstract

BackgroundDepression is a prevalent and problematic mental disorder that often has an onset in adolescence. Previous studies have illustrated that depression disclosures on social media are common and may be linked to an individual’s experiences of depression. However, most studies have examined depression displays on social media at a single time point.ObjectiveThis study aims to investigate displayed depression symptoms on Facebook at 2 developmental time points based on symptom type and gender.MethodsParticipants were recruited from an ongoing longitudinal cohort study. The content analysis of text-based Facebook data over 1 year was conducted at 2 time points: time 1 (adolescence; age 17-18 years) and time 2 (young adulthood; ages 20-22 years). Diagnostic criteria for depression were applied to each post to identify the displayed depression symptoms. Data were extracted verbatim. The analysis included nonparametric tests for comparisons.ResultsA total of 78 participants’ Facebook profiles were examined, of which 40 (51%) were male. At time 1, 62% (48/78) of the adolescents had a Facebook profile, and 54% (26/78) displayed depression symptom references with an average of 9.4 (SD 3.1) references and 3.3 (SD 2.3) symptom types. Of the 78 participants, 15 (19%) females and 12 (15%) males displayed depression symptom references; these prevalence estimates were not significantly different by gender (P=.59). At time 2, 35 young adults displayed symptoms of depression with an average of 4.6 (SD 2.3) references and 2.4 (SD 1.3) symptom types. There were no differences in the prevalence of symptoms of depression displayed between males (n=19) and females (n=16; P=.63).ConclusionsThis content analysis study within an ongoing cohort study illustrates the differences in depression displays on Facebook by developmental stage and symptom. This study contributes to a growing body of literature by showing that using social media to observe and understand depression during the emerging adult developmental period may be a valuable approach.

Highlights

BackgroundDepression often has an onset during adolescence and young adulthood [1,2,3]
Retrospective data collection using Facebook profiles was conducted between April 2015 and August 2016
Among these 212 eligible Developmental Pathways Project (DPP) participants, 199 (93.9%) participants provided information about their Facebook profile, and 89 (41.9%) participants consented to participate in this study

Summary

Introduction

BackgroundDepression often has an onset during adolescence and young adulthood [1,2,3]. Given the nearly ubiquitous use of SNSs among adolescents and young adults, the disclosure of depression on SNSs may present an innovative opportunity to evaluate how depression displays on social media may change during the developmental transitions of emerging adulthood. SNSs may allow researchers to understand unique aspects of the depression experience during adolescence and young adulthood, such as gender differences or changes in the types of symptoms displayed over time. Objective: This study aims to investigate displayed depression symptoms on Facebook at 2 developmental time points based on symptom type and gender. Conclusions: This content analysis study within an ongoing cohort study illustrates the differences in depression displays on Facebook by developmental stage and symptom. This study contributes to a growing body of literature by showing that using social media to observe and understand depression during the emerging adult developmental period may be a valuable approach

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