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Mair, EF 
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5356-5927,
2024.
The virtual social cure: exploring the impact of online group membership on health and well-being.
PhD, Nottingham Trent University.
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Abstract
The Social Identity Approach to Health has established that identification with an offline group can have a positive impact on health, acting as a ‘Social Cure’ (Haslam et al., 2018). However, there is limited research into whether social identities can be developed and maintained online. This research aims to address this gap, exploring whether online group membership may impact mental health, well-being and loneliness for young adults.
A mixed methods approach over three studies was carried out. Study 1 involved two cross-sectional online surveys of young adults, one prior to the COVID-19 pandemic (N=169) and one during the COVID-19 pandemic (N=179), to quantitatively explore well-being and loneliness of young adults and their identification with online groups. Study 2 was designed to be a longitudinal online survey of young adults who had experienced the transition to university following the COVID-19 pandemic (N=139), quantitatively exploring multiple group membership of online and offline groups, and well-being and loneliness. Study 3 used online Social Identity Mapping and semi-structured interviews with young adults who had experienced the transition to university following the COVID-19 pandemic (N=30) to explore the social groups participants belonged to, the impact of COVID-19, and the experience of loneliness for young adults.
The quantitative results suggested identification with an online group may support well-being through greater social support received and lower loneliness. Qualitatively, young adults described how times of significant life change encouraged a period of evaluation of social groups, enacting changes to identity networks to ensure needs were being met, with online group memberships facilitating this process. The findings suggest initial support of a virtual ‘Social Cure’, as online groups were used to develop and maintain identities, and to address social and psychological needs. Although, online groups also highlighted disconnection, and in-person interaction was preferred when assessing new identity gain.
| Item Type: | Thesis |
|---|---|
| Creators: | Mair, E.F. |
| Contributors: | Name Role NTU ID ORCID |
| Date: | October 2024 |
| Rights: | The copyright in this work is held by the author. You may copy up to 5% of this work for private study, or personal, non-commercial research. Any re-use of the information contained within this document should be fully referenced, quoting the author, title, university, degree level and pagination. Queries or requests for any other use, or if a more substantial copy is required, should be directed to the author. |
| Divisions: | Schools > School of Social Sciences |
| Record created by: | Jeremy Silvester |
| Date Added: | 03 Sep 2025 09:35 |
| Last Modified: | 03 Sep 2025 09:35 |
| URI: | https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/54284 |
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