Cultures of the Internet: Identity, community and mental health | Culture and communication in digital worlds

Author(s): Laurence J. Kirmayer, Eugene Raikhel, Sadeq Rahimi

Year of publication: 2013

Keywords: Internet, Social networking, Identity, Community, Political action

Methodology/Sample: Literature review/_

Reference: Kirmayer, L. J., Raikhel, E., & Rahimi, S. (2013). Cultures of the Internet: Identity, community and mental health. Transcultural psychiatry, 50(2), 165-191. https://doi.org/10.1177/1363461513490626

Abstract

The Internet and World Wide Web have woven together humanity in new ways, creating global communities, new forms of identity and pathology, and new modes of intervention. This issue of Transcultural Psychiatry presents selected papers from the annual McGill Advanced Study Institute (ASI) in Cultural Psychiatry on ‘‘Cultures of the Internet’’ which took place in Montreal, April 26–29, 2011. The ASI addressed four broad areas: (a) how the Internet is transforming human functioning, personhood, and identity through the engagement with electronic media; (b) how electronic networking gives rise to new groups and forms of community, with shifting notions of public and private, local and distant; (c) the emergence of new pathologies of the Internet, e.g., Internet addiction, group suicide, cyberbullying, and disruptions of neurodevelopment; and finally, (d) the use of the Internet in mental health care, for example, by consumer advocacy and support groups, as well as for the delivery of health information, web-based consultation, treatment intervention, and mental health promotion. In addition to some of the ASI papers, this issue includes other recent contributions to the journal on related themes. In this introductory essay, we set out some of the broad implications of the Internet and related new media and information communication technologies (ICT) for cultural psychiatry

> Summary

The Internet transforms human functioning, identity, and community through electronic media engagement.
It creates new pathologies like Internet addiction and cyberbullying.
Social networking platforms like Facebook promote a neoliberal self-concept.
The Internet fosters both global culture and group differentiation, impacting identity.
Digital communities, such as the “digital ummah,” redefine traditional notions of community.

> Problem statement

The paper discusses the challenges of defining Internet addiction as a diagnostic category within psychiatric nosologies.
It highlights the need to understand the etiology of disorders linked to technology interaction.
The research addresses the differentiation of groups and identities shaped by the Internet.
It critiques the language of “addiction” as potentially misleading and overly broad.
The paper emphasizes the importance of examining both harmful and positive trajectories of online gaming.
It raises concerns about the impact of the Internet on mental health and community dynamics.

> Methods used

Not addressed in the paper.

> Practical implications

The Internet transforms cultural meanings, impacting mental health and illness, necessitating new research methodologies like digital ethnography.
Online communities pose challenges for researchers in tracking participants’ offline lives.
New social media forms enable diverse self-expression and participation, influencing mental health.
The Internet facilitates rapid dissemination of content, affecting social dynamics and community interactions.
Researchers must consider the unintended consequences of online interactions on offline relationships.