Week 5 Social Support 21 Century

Week 5 Social Support 21 Century

Week 5 Social Support 21 Century 150 150 Peter

Week 5 Social Support 21 Century

In your opinion, could public health prevention occur successfully using platforms such as these?
Do online platforms for social networking ‘qualify’ as true social networks (when compared to person-to- person networks).

Sample Paper

Social Support in the 21st Century

Social support is crucial in a life of a human being. It involves having the support of family, friends, and other people in a time of crisis or need. Social support promotes a positive self-image leading to a quality life. In a healthcare setting, social support alleviates the effects occasioned by emotional distress. It results in good mental health and enhanced self-esteem. In the 21st Century, online platforms play a crucial role in social support (Nick et al., 2018). Despite the crucial role of the online social support platforms, the technology can be harmful. This paper focuses on the effects of online platforms in social networking to boost public health and how it qualifies as a true social network compared to a person-person network.

The use of social support technology can prevent a disease that threatens public health. An online platform is a valuable tool in the 21st Century that has made it easy for the public to access vital information and participate in social support programs. In case of a disease outbreak, the response is faster since the information reaches the concerned people on time. A timely response will alleviate the public from contracting a disease. However, the online platform has had some harm to public health. For example, there have been a lot of rumors about the COVID-19 vaccines that have led to frustration in the fight against the virus (Bao et al., 2020). The platform is used to spread lies resulting in laxity in the vaccine uptake, weakening the fight against the virus.

Although the online platform facilitates the social support network, the person-to-person networks remain the best. According to Awan et al. (2021), fake social media profiles have harmed social and business entities. Online healthcare social networks have become an opportunity for fraud. Person-to-person delivery of social support is not prone to fraud, and hence it remains the best option for social support in healthcare. Scrutinizing the social media platforms can contribute to the establishment of legit online social support networks.

References

Awan, M. J., Khan, M. A., Ansari, Z. K., Yasin, A., & Shehzad, H. M. F. (2021). Fake profile recognition using big data analytics in social media platforms. Int. J. Comput. Appl. Technol.

Bao, H., Cao, B., Xiong, Y., & Tang, W. (2020). Digital media’s role in the COVID-19 pandemic. JMIR mHealth and uHealth, 8(9), e20156.

Nick, E. A., Cole, D. A., Cho, S. J., Smith, D. K., Carter, T. G., & Zelkowitz, R. L. (2018). The Online Social Support Scale: Measure development and validation. Psychological assessment, 30(9), 1127.