Using Online Groups to Provide Support to Asian American Men: Racial, Cultural, Gender, and Treatment Issues.

Summary of Guidelines for Providing Online Groups to Asian American Men Goals for the group• Provide support in dealing with racism and contesting the legitimacy of dominant culturalrepresentations of Asian American men• Foster positive sense of ethnic and racial identity• Foster self-definition of what it means to be an Asian American manFormats• Bulletin board• Listserv• Bulletin board/listserv combination• Chat roomTypes of groupsOpen—membership and access are unrestricted• Ethical responsibilities similar to those in mass media presentations• Psychologists should make explicit that there is no professional relationshipClosed—membership and access are restricted• Ethical responsibilities more similar to therapy• Psychologists should make explicit that there is no professional relationship• Screen potential members with respect to their appropriateness for the group• Develop contingency plans and referral resources for members• Inform members about the limits of confidentiality in on-line groupsRoles of psychologists• Consultant—lends expertise in setting up on-line groups; trains others to facilitate on-line groups• Expert advisor—provides information and directs members toward resources• Facilitator—provides discussion topics, answers questions, and facilitates group processGuidelines for facilitating online groups for Asian American men• Preliminary logistics include making decisions about member characteristics, group format, the roleof the facilitator, and whether/how potential members will be recruited and screened• Phases of the group