Health communication and community in a digital age: A case study of #blackgirlsrun

Purpose: Internet studies suggest traditional notions of community be challenged as communication technology enables people to “surround” themselves with others whom they are close to socially as opposed to geographically. This research evaluates evidence from Black Girls RUN!’s “viral” health movement to explore the role of online communication in developing communities that bolster change in health attitudes and behavior.

Methods: This study used ethnographic methods including netnography, participant observation, and ten qualitative interviews. Instagram posts were archived and analyzed using the hashtag #blackgirlsrun.

Results: Findings suggest that members of online communities can commit to overcoming health challenges in ways similar to those who connect in-person. The women of BGR’s online community demonstrate that collective efficacy, the willingness of individuals to look out for others in their community, can be built upon shared health values and experiences. For these women, shared understandings of a dire Black women’s health crisis, the need to combat stereotypes, and identifying with a group of peers has transformed an important health message into a forceful online health community.

Discussion: With social media’s ability to eliminate barriers of distance and time, users can participate in and discuss fitness activities with others by communicating online. This research suggests that considering underlying uses of social media, such as self-representation or connecting with others who share similar experiences, would allow health communicators to move beyond developing successful health campaigns to promoting virtual health conversations and communities, a distinction that could allow healthy messages to have greater reach and significant influence.