Abstract

Purpose

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common behavioural condition. This article introduces a new data science method, word association thematic analysis, to investigate whether ADHD tweets can give insights into patient concerns and online communication needs.

Design/methodology/approach

Tweets matching “my ADHD” (n=58,893) and 99 other conditions (n=1,341,442) were gathered and two thematic analyses conducted. Analysis 1: A standard thematic analysis of ADHD-related tweets. Analysis 2: A word association thematic analysis of themes unique to ADHD.

Findings

The themes that emerged from the two analyses included people ascribing their brains agency to explain and justify their symptoms and using the concept of neurodivergence for a positive self-image.

Research limitations

This is a single case study and the results may differ for other topics.

Practical implications

Health professionals should be sensitive to patients’ needs to understand their behaviour, find ways to justify and explain it to others and to be positive about their condition.

Originality/value

Word association thematic analysis can give new insights into the (self-reported) patient perspective.

中文翻译：

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“我的ADHD Hellbrain”：Twitter数据科学对行为障碍的观点

摘要

目的

注意缺陷多动障碍（ADHD）是一种常见的行为状况。本文介绍了一种新的数据科学方法，即单词关联主题分析，以研究ADHD推文是否可以洞悉患者的担忧和在线交流需求。

设计/方法/方法

收集了与“我的多动症”（n = 58,893）和其他99个条件（n = 1,341,442）相匹配的推文，并进行了两次主题分析。分析1：与ADHD相关的推文的标准主题分析。分析2：对多动症独特主题的单词联想主题分析。

发现

两次分析中出现的主题包括人们要求他们的大脑机构解释和证明他们的症状，并使用神经发散的概念获得积极的自我形象。

研究局限性

这是一个案例研究，其他主题的结果可能有所不同。

实际影响

卫生专业人员应该对患者的需求敏感，以了解他们的行为，找到方法向他人证明和解释该行为，并对他们的状况持积极态度。

创意/价值

单词联想主题分析可以为（自我报告的）患者视角提供新的见解。