Field Observation Essay
Sabah Elroubat
The City College of New York
ENG 21002: Writing for the Social Sciences
Crystal Rodwell
April 2, 2025

…
Introduction

In an era where awareness of mental health is gaining global momentum, cultural
contexts continue to shape how mental health is discussed and addressed. This field essay
focuses on the “Psychology Community Ψ”. A community on the social media platform 𝕏
(formerly known as Twitter). This is a rapidly growing virtual community serving Arab and
Muslim users seeking support and information in the field of mental health. This article discusses
the research problem of the intersection of cultural identity and mental health discourse in elect,
specifically studying how Arab and Islamic cultural contexts affect psychological discussions,
help-seeking behaviors, and community formation in digital environments.

The main objectives of this research are: to analyze interaction patterns within the mental
health community with a specific cultural background (Arab-Islamic in this case); to study how
traditional values integrate with contemporary psychological approaches; and to study how
anonymous electronic platforms facilitate mental health discussions in conservative cultures.

The Psychology Cummunity was chosen as a site for monitoring and observation due to
its unique position as one of the largest online mental health communities in Arabic, its rapid
growth indicating significant unmet needs, and its clear goal of connecting scientific psychology
approaches with Islamic cultural values. Monitoring and observation were conducted focusing on
community interactions, language use, topic patterns, and interaction dynamics between
members and moderators. Data was collected through systematic documentation of posts,
responses, and community management practices, focusing on patterns rather than identifiable
individual content to maintain ethical standards.

The Psychology Community is part of the “𝕏 Communities” section, it was created
on May 17, 2024, and has grown to 38,700 members in less than a year! The community is
visually defined by the psychology symbol (Ψ), its display image shows two heads
communicating with each other, and is guided by a slogan that embodies its mission: “Here
where science meets emotions and knowledge meets awareness, to rise together towards better
mental health.” This slogan, prominently displayed at the top of the community page, establishes
the dual focus on scientific knowledge and emotional support, emphasizing collective progress –
which represents a value alignment with collective cultural orientations.

The community is managed by ten clear rules that prioritize psychological focus,
respectful interactions, and content quality. These rules are not just suggestions but effectively
enforced guidelines, with violations resulting in post removal or member expulsion. The
community maintains an organized structure, with four qualified psychologists serving as
moderators who have significant influence on guiding discussion and content validity and
credibility.

Daily activity is substantial, with members producing more than 500 posts daily. I took
one hundred tweets posted in a day, analyzed and categorized them into different lists, and found
that: 65% of tweets were members seeking advice and guidance (mostly questions about anxiety,
social phobia, and depression), 20% sharing personal experiences, 10% moderators providing
important information about mental health, and 5% suggestions for books or useful resources in
the field of psychology.

Classical Arabic is the primary language of communication, contributing to linguistic
unity, although members likely come from different regional backgrounds throughout the Arab
world, from Iraq to Morocco, though it is noted that the vast majority of members are from Saudi
Arabia.

The language used displays distinctive characteristics reflecting the cultural context of
the community:
Integration of Religious Terminology: Psychological concepts are often formulated
using Islamic terminology and references. Terms such as “patience” are used alongside clinical
terms like “depression,” creating hybrid vocabulary that connects traditional and modern
approaches to mental health. But they do not completely contradict each other.

Respectful Communication: When addressing moderators, members often avoid using
unprofessional language, instead using respectful language that acknowledges professional
status. Questions are typically formulated with humility, often beginning with phrases like “If
you…” or “I would be grateful for your expertise regarding…”

Disclosure with Privacy Consideration: Members use various linguistic strategies to
share personal struggles while maintaining privacy, including using third-person narrative (“I
have a friend who…”) when discussing sensitive issues, as stigma remains prevalent in Arab
society.

The tone of conversations varies depending on the nature of the interaction, but typically
maintains formality, especially in communication between members and moderators. There is a
notable absence of colloquial expressions or dialects, suggesting that members consciously
elevate their language when discussing psychological topics in this field, perhaps reflecting the
seriousness of the topics discussed.

Member Demographics
While precise demographic data is unavailable, through my observation I found that: the
community consists mostly of Arabs (about 95% based on language use and cultural references),
and most are Muslims, based on religious references in their discussions. The age demographic is
difficult to determine, though content references suggest a focus on young adults in their early
twenties to middle-aged adults, likely ranging from university students to professionals.

Gender representation appears relatively balanced based on self-identification (in Arabic,
“I, me,” is different for men and woman, so you can recognize the gender easily) in posts, but
female interaction is higher than male, with most general posts being made by males and most
comments coming from females. Women’s questions are often framed within family contexts or
relationship dynamics, while male members often discuss work pressures or existential concerns likely –reflecting traditional gender roles in many Arab societies.

Members typically maintain semi-anonymous profiles within the community, rarely using
full real names, and this concealment of identity seems to facilitate more open discussion about
topics usually considered stigmatized, creating a safe space where mental health problems, which
might make the complainant seem fragile and weak, can be cautiously dealt with.

Social and economic indicators sometimes emerge through references to education levels,
professional contexts, or access to mental health resources. Many members appear educated
(referring to university experiences or professional contexts), but living in areas with limited
mental health resources, or resources may be plentiful but to escape the stigma attached to seeing
a psychological specialist, they prefer this electronic community.

Community Rituals and Cultural Practices
Several recurring patterns emerge that function as community rituals:

Friday Reflection Posts: There is a notable increase in spiritually-themed mental health
discussions occurring on Friday (the Islamic holy day), with moderators often sharing content
that explicitly connects Islamic teachings with mental health. Such as meditation in nature,
prayer, or visiting relatives.

Resource Sharing Circles: Moderators periodically initiate dedicated topics for sharing
mental health resources, creating opportunities for knowledge exchange.

Scenario Analysing: At least once a week, moderators invent a fictional scenario
discussing a case of someone with a disorder, then ask members to try to provide psychological
analysis for this case, and after 14 hours the moderators give the correct analysis.

These practices contribute to maintaining community vitality and achieving balance
between (Islamic) culture and psychology.

The psychology community demonstrates prominent patterns reflecting broader social
and cultural dynamics in how Arab and Islamic societies deal with mental health. Due to stigma,
people have resorted to this electronic space, and the community structure reveals a remarkable
adaptation of traditional authority patterns to the anonymous internet environment. The evident
respect for moderators maintains cultural respect for expertise, showing that people respect the
profession and don’t despise it but avoid it only because of social embarrassment. Meanwhile,
the near-complete concealment of identity on the platform contributes to creating safety for
discussing sensitive topics.

Commentary
I think that prevalence of anxiety, depression, and social phobia as discussion topics likely
reflects multiple intersecting factors. First, these conditions are already globally prevalent, thus
statistically likely to be common concerns.

However, their prevalence in this community may also reflect psychological challenges considered most “acceptable” for discussion within cultural frameworks that still stigmatize some mental health conditions. But the more correct explanation might be that the Arab region is going through many problems at this time, widespread wars, many people are dissatisfied with their countries’ politics, and the spread of poverty or increasing unemployment in most countries due to displaced people from countries with war to countries without war, so the displaced take jobs and unemployment increases, leading to more psychological diseases or problems.

What is striking, however, is the absence or minimization of discussion about more
stigmatized conditions, such as psychotic disorders or substance abuse problems, indicating that
cultural taboos still influence which aspects of mental health can be addressed publicly even in
anonymous environments.

I liked the integration of Islamic concepts with psychological terminology represents a
sophisticated cultural adaptation strategy. By framing evidence-based psychological concepts
within familiar religious and cultural frameworks, the community provides easy entry points for
members who might resist “Western” psychological approaches on grounds that they corrupt
one’s faith. This integration is not merely superficial but appears to represent a thoughtful
synthesis that elevates both traditional wisdom and contemporary scientific understanding – a
balance explicitly stated in the community’s mission.

I found the vertical communication structure intresting (member-to-moderator rather than peer-to-peer) as it reflects collective cultural values where authority and expertise are respected. However, this
pattern may inadvertently hinder the development of peer support networks and community
resilience. This creates greater pressure on community moderators as the four moderators cannot
deeply interact with all daily posts exceeding 500. This observation aligns with Al-Krenawi’s
research on help-seeking patterns in Arab communities, where professional help is often
preferred over peer support.
At the end, the community’s rapid growth to 38,700 members within one year indicates a
pressing need for culturally sensitive mental health resources in Arabic. This is something that
we should be working on together with governments or relevant official authorities.

Pages: 1 2