Drivers of healthy online conversations about loneliness and depression
Name
1136610828-MIT.pdf
Size
5.39 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
585fa64d4c98e3b0207d5014a8d12bee
Author(s)
Fratamico, Lauren(Lauren Nicole)
Advisor(s)
Deb Roy.
Date Issued
2019
Publisher
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Abstract
Loneliness is becoming a global epidemic. As many as 33% of Americans report being chronically lonely, with similar percentages reported in countries around the world. Additionally, this is a percentage that has risen by as much as 50% in recent years. Many are turning to online forums as a way to connect with others about their feelings of loneliness and to begin to reduce these feelings. However, posts often go unresponded to and online conversations do not take place, perhaps because those conversing did not find a connection between each other, potentially leaving the poster feeling even more lonely. In this thesis, I first define health of conversation for these types of supportive online conversations. I then examine the contributors to conversational health, both in terms of the homophily of the participants and the way in which the participants are conversing. By comparing these characteristics among the spectrum of healthy, supportive, online conversations, I lay the groundwork for being able to facilitate finding optimal conversation partners for those that are feeling lonely. I conclude by envisioning what an interface would look like that would take these factors into account so people can most quickly find the right person to engage with.
Description
Thesis: S.M., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts and Sciences, 2019
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 54-60).
Subjects
Program in Media Arts and Sciences
MIT Department
Program in Media Arts and Sciences (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
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MIT theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed, downloaded, or printed from this source but further reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission.
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