A Comparative Study of Information Needs of Physical and Mental Illness Users in an Online Health Community

Introduction. This study aims to reveal the similarities and differences in the information needs of users with physical and mental illnesses in an online health community from cognitive and emotional dimensions. Method. Based on the CMDD dataset, the study employed the LDA topic model to identify information need topics and the TextBlob method to analyse the emotional tendencies of users when expressing information need topics. Analysis. This study employs LDA topic modeling, TextBlob for sentiment analysis, and independent sample T-tests as statistical methods to conduct a comprehensive and in-depth analysis of the research question. Results. The study found that the information need topics of both types of users focused on Medical Procedures, Emotional Support, Social Life, Disease Rehabilitation, Treatment Plans, and Medication Guidance. Over time, the information needs of both types of users regarding Medical Procedures showed similar trends. Additionally, users with mental illnesses exhibited more negative emotional tendencies when expressing each information need topic. Conclusions. The information needs of users with physical and mental illnesses differ significantly both cognitively and emotionally. It suggests that online health communities should provide customised and personalised information services to users based on their illness characteristics, as well as enhance emotional support for users with mental illnesses in the future.