Author Type

Graduate Student

Date of Award

2016

Document Type

Dissertation

Publication Status

Version of Record

Submission Date

October 2026

Thesis/Dissertation Advisor [Chair]

Gordon, Shirley C.

Abstract

An increasing number of individuals are looking for health information, interacting with health care providers, and participating in health-related online support groups The virtual landscape of the internet offers the opportunity for individuals to establish contact and relationships with persons having similar health concerns anywhere, anytime The phenomenon of health-related social media use generated an interest in why persons in the transplant journey chose to participate in an online support community, how they interacted and made use of the online community, and how this knowledge could assist nursing in improving care for this growing population A six month sample of internet postings from an international transplant-related social media site was analyzed using an inductive qualitative content analysis adapted from Graneheim and Lundman (2003) within the theoretical lens of Unitary Caring Science (Smith, 1999) The study provided a unique perspective of how members used the social media support group The synthesis of four pandimensional interconnected patterns, expressing emotions, sharing experiences, exchanging information, and offering reciprocal support lead to a theme of being known and understood Healing transcendence emerged as a unitary transformative metatheme that reflected the holistic nature of the member interaction in the online support experience

Extent

200 p

Comments

Includes bibliography|Dissertation (PhD)--Florida Atlantic University, 2016|FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection|Includes bibliography

Identifier

FA00004768

Format

pdf

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