Ann Marie White, Ph.D., University of Rochester Medical Center
Ms. Melanie Funchess, Director, Mental Health Association
February 11, 2016

ABSTRACT

Many health-related concerns due the interplay of community members’ social media and geographical uses exist. However, rapid deployment of massive amounts of social media data and big data analytic tools for sensing can also become a health intervention aid for local communities. We examine this dynamic interplay through a focus on natural helpers, individuals who others routinely turn to for help and support, and whose efforts can reduce violence risks and promote mental health and wellness in local communities.

During this presentation, we will describe how a community can begin to develop and deploy its own sensing methods for health-related content signals in its social media use through academic-community partnered research.

We will explore how to build an academic–community research partnership that can sense health risks in social media (e.g., alcohol use mentions) while locating and mobilizing, helping networks in communities in order to better identify where quality of life and wellness is robust and spread community-building initiatives that reinforce social cohesion and reduce observable risks for violence.