10.2190/KF88-9VDH-YN6U-UWAN KF889VDHYN6UUWAN 247 Characteristics of an On-Line Mutual-Help Group for Depression 247 265 20020509 20020509 20020509 20020509 KF889VDHYN6UUWAN.pdf http://baywood.metapress.com/link.asp?target=contribution&id=KF889VDHYN6UUWAN 3 Deborah A. Salem and G. Anne Bogat A recent development in mutual help has been the proliferation of on-line mutual-help and self-help groups. This study used a qualitative methodology to describe the characteristics of an on-line mutual-help group for depression. Posts (i.e., messages sent to the group) from two randomly chosen weeks (N = 1863 posts; 533 participants) were content coded in order to identify group characteristics. The characteristics identified were related to: 1) group access (universal accessibility and technical difficulties); 2) lack of physical and auditory presence (anonymity, lurking, and lack of personal information); 3) access to archived information; and 4) members roles (development of out-of-group relationships and dispersion of leadership). These characteristics are discussed with reference to the unique context they create for the provision of mutual help.