Barriers and enablers to the moderation of self-harm content for a young person’s online forum

Abstract

Background: Self-harm amongst young people in the United Kingdom is higher than in other European countries. Young people who self-harm are often reluctant to seek professional help, turning increasingly to the internet for support, including online forums. There are concerns about misinformation or harmful content being shared, potentially leading to self-harm contagion. Moderation of online forums can reduce risks, improving forum safety. Moderation of self-harm content, however, is an under-researched area. Aims: Using the Behaviour Change Wheel (BCW), this study examines the barriers and enablers to moderation of self-harm content and suggests behaviour change techniques (BCTs) to address barriers. Method: Qualitative interviews with 8 moderators (of a total of 16) from the UK’s leading young people’s support service for under 25s, The Mix, were conducted. Results: Thematic analysis identified eleven enablers, four barriers and one both an enabler and a barrier. Barriers included emotional exhaustion, working with partial information, access to timely support, vagueness within the guidelines and influence of community users. BCTs selected included increasing social support through a moderation buddy. Conclusions: Optimisation strategies focus on increasing the support and level of information available to moderators and could be considered by other organisations providing similar services.