Duilio Balsamo, Paolo Bajardi, Gianmarco De Francisci Morales, Corrado Monti, Rossano Schifanella.
International AAAI Conference on Weblogs and Social Media (ICWSM2023). AAAI, 2023.
Digital communities can replicate the social mechanisms of peer support traditionally found in offline recovery groups. This study analyzes interactions among Reddit users in opioid recovery, uncovering patterns of trust, reciprocity, and behavioral reinforcement that help sustain participation and progress. The results indicate that online spaces can act as functional surrogates for support networks, providing structure and belonging to individuals facing stigma and isolation.