Engaging Social Media Users with Health Education and Physical Activity Promotion

Health-dedicated groups on social media provide different contents and social support to their peers. Our objective is to analyze users’ engagement with health education and physical activity promotion posts according to the expressed social support and social media. All health education and physical activity promotion posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram during 2017–2019 by a diabetes association were extracted. We identified the type of social support within these posts; and analysed the users’ engagement with these posts according to the type of social support and social media channel. A total of 260 posts dealing with health education (n=200) and physical activity promotion (n=60) were published. Posts promoting physical activity received 54% more likes than posts on health education (p<0.05), but they were 69% less likely to receive comments and be shared (both p<0.01). Posts expressing tangible assistance received 6 times more likes (p<0.001), and the ones indicating network support almost 11 times more shares (p<0.05). Posts expressing two or more types of social support were the most engaging (3 times more likes, 2 times more comments, and over 6 times more shares, all p<0.001). Health-dedicated social media groups can be effective channels for providing health education and for promoting physical activity among individuals with diabetes. Our findings suggest that engagement with health education and physical activity promotion posts can be increased by providing tangible assistance, network support, or expressing two or more types of social support; and by posting on Facebook and Instagram.

Support during pregnancy for women at increased risk of low birthweight babies

Background: Studies consistently show a relationship between social disadvantage and low birthweight. Many countries have programs offering special assistance to women thought to be at risk for giving birth to a low birthweight infant. These programs may include advice and counseling (about nutrition, rest, stress management, alcohol and recreational drug use), tangible assistance (e.g., transportation to clinic appointments, help with household responsibilities), and emotional support. The programs may be delivered by multidisciplinary teams of health professionals, by specially trained lay workers, or by a combination of lay and professional workers. Objectives: The objective of this review was to assess the effects of programs offering additional social support for pregnant women who are believed to be at risk for giving birth to preterm or low birthweight babies. Search methods: We searched the Cochrane Pregnancy and Childbirth Group's Trials Register (March 2009). Selection criteria: Randomized trials of additional support during at-risk pregnancy by either a professional (social worker, midwife, or nurse) or specially trained lay person, compared to routine care. Additional support was defined as some form of emotional support (e.g., counseling, reassurance, sympathetic listening) and information or advice or both, either in home visits or during clinic appointments, and could include tangible assistance (e.g., transportation to clinic appointments, assistance with the care of other children at home). Data collection and analysis: We independently assessed trial quality and extracted data. Double data entry was performed. We contacted study authors to request additional information. Results: Eighteen trials, involving 12,658 women, were included. The trials were generally of good to excellent quality, although three used an allocation method likely to introduce bias. Programs offering additional social support for at-risk pregnant women were not associated with improvements in any perinatal outcomes, but there was a reduction in the likelihood of caesarean birth and an increased likelihood of elective termination of pregnancy. Some improvements in immediate maternal psychosocial outcomes were found in individual trials. Authors' conclusions: Pregnant women need the support of caring family members, friends, and health professionals. While programs which offer additional support during pregnancy are unlikely to prevent the pregnancy from resulting in a low birthweight or preterm baby, they may be helpful in reducing the likelihood of caesarean birth.

Support during pregnancy for women at increased risk of low birthweight babies

Background: Studies consistently show a relationship between social disadvantage and low birthweight. Many countries have programs offering special assistance to women thought to be at risk for giving birth to a low birthweight infant. These programs may include advice and counseling (about nutrition, rest, stress management, alcohol and recreational drug use), tangible assistance (e.g., transportation to clinic appointments, help with household responsibilities), and emotional support. The programs may be delivered by multidisciplinary teams of health professionals, by specially trained lay workers, or by a combination of lay and professional workers. Objectives: The objective of this review was to assess the effects of programs offering additional social support for pregnant women who are believed to be at risk for giving birth to preterm or low birthweight babies. Search methods: We searched the Cochrane Pregnancy and Childbirth Group's Trials Register (March 2009). Selection criteria: Randomized trials of additional support during at-risk pregnancy by either a professional (social worker, midwife, or nurse) or specially trained lay person, compared to routine care. Additional support was defined as some form of emotional support (e.g., counseling, reassurance, sympathetic listening) and information or advice or both, either in home visits or during clinic appointments, and could include tangible assistance (e.g., transportation to clinic appointments, assistance with the care of other children at home). Data collection and analysis: We independently assessed trial quality and extracted data. Double data entry was performed. We contacted study authors to request additional information. Results: Eighteen trials, involving 12,658 women, were included. The trials were generally of good to excellent quality, although three used an allocation method likely to introduce bias. Programs offering additional social support for at-risk pregnant women were not associated with improvements in any perinatal outcomes, but there was a reduction in the likelihood of caesarean birth and an increased likelihood of elective termination of pregnancy. Some improvements in immediate maternal psychosocial outcomes were found in individual trials. Authors' conclusions: Pregnant women need the support of caring family members, friends, and health professionals. While programs which offer additional support during pregnancy are unlikely to prevent the pregnancy from resulting in a low birthweight or preterm baby, they may be helpful in reducing the likelihood of caesarean birth.

Coping, Social Support, and Suicide Attempts Among Homeless Adolescents

Background: Homeless youth are a population at risk for suicidal behavior. Despite growing knowledge about risk factors, protective factors against suicidal behavior among this population are still poorly understood. Aims: To explore differences in coping and social support between homeless adolescents who attempted suicide and those who did not. Method: In total, 76 homeless adolescents from eight different shelters provided information about their suicidal behaviors over the previous year and filled out coping and social support questionnaires. Results: Homeless adolescents who had not attempted suicide perceived more social support (tangible assistance and guidance). Conversely, youth who had attempted suicide reported using more nonproductive strategies of coping (tension reduction, keep to self, and self-blame). Tangible assistance and tension reduction were found to be the strongest predictors. Limitations: As most of these youth were not homeless for a long time, care should be taken in generalizing these results to adolescents with longer histories of homelessness. Conclusion: Productive coping does not seem to constitute a sufficient personal resource to protect homeless adolescents from suicide attempts. Nonproductive coping could, however, be considered a serious risk factor. Consequently, promoting homeless youths' ability to find environmental resources, especially tangible assistance, could be the most valuable approach.

Dukungan Sosial Orangtua dan Guru dalam Mengembangkan Kemandirian Anak Autisme

Children with autism have difficulties in their cognitive function, language, behavior, and social interaction. Teachers and parents have an important role to educate and take care of autistic children to achieve their independence. One form of environmental role in helping the autonomy of children with autism is social support. In order to improve the child's ability, treatment should be comprehensively between parent, psychologist (counselor), psychiatrist, teacher and therapist. But in reality, the handling of children with autism requires a very expensive cost. Unfortunately, many autistic children are unable to afford those therapies because the cost is too high. This research intends to study the social support of teachers and parents in children with autism who cannot afford any therapies to help the children independently. Therefore the support from teachers and parents become very crucial in developing their independence, because they do not have other resources to train autistic children. This research is qualitative research, with purpose to obtain a complete picture of the respondents’ experiences to the circumstances they experienced. The respondents in this research are parent and teacher. We also interview the child’s relatives, who knows the parent and the teacher, to validate their stories. The results show that with their economic limitation, both parent and teacher try to develop the autistic children to be independent, through tangible assistance, informational support and emotional support.

The Role of Digital and Social Media in Supporting Bereaved Students

This chapter describes the benefits and challenges that can occur with adolescents’ use of digital media and social media in relation to a death, beginning with the pros and cons of death notification via digital and social media such as Facebook, Twitter, and texting. Digital and social media resources can be used to gain information about grief, to facilitate the provision of tangible assistance to the bereaved, and to offer emotional support. The use of social media as a tool for survivor advocacy will be discussed. Online resources available to facilitate cybersafety are covered. A list of questions to facilitate conversations with students about their use and impact of digital and social media use is included.

The Contribution of Support Networks to Household Labor in African American Families

Studies on support networks suggest that networks are an important context from which families manage, especially for African American families. The 1988 National Survey on Families and Households was used to assess the extent of network involvement and the relationship to household labor. Among married, African American couples, about half received tangible assistance related to managing a household and a majority of men and women reported receiving emotional support from friends and relatives. Path models with tangible assistance, emotional support, demographic factors, and an indicator of stress revealed different variable relationships for husbands and wives. Husbands who received help with tasks reported more hours in weekly housework time. For wives, however, tangible assistance was independent of time in household tasks, but emotional support contributed to feeling overwhelmed by household responsibilities.

Paul as Master Builder Construction Terms in First Corinthians

For some time the present writer has been impressed by certain verbal and phraseological correspondences between a number of ancient inscriptions, relating to temple building and public works, and a rather extensive metaphor in Paul's first letter to the Corinthians. This paper will address some parallel features of form and content shared by a particular inscription of the 4th century B.C. from Arcadian Tegea and the Pauline metaphor (1 Cor 3. 9b–17), features which offer tangible assistance in the interpretation of the latter.