Hunting, Vali Sunshine2009-10-262009-10-2620092009-10-26http://hdl.handle.net/1828/1800The postpartum period can be a lonely experience leaving some new mothers feeling isolated and under-supported. The phenomenon of the Internet has now made social support available within cyberspace. The purpose of this thesis is to investigate first-time mothers’ engagement in social support through online and offline communities. This study explored an online group of mothers from across an entire city, an online group of mothers living within a local community, and an offline comparison group. A total of 20 interviews were conducted. First-time mothers appreciated online support, as well as face-to-face social support. The citywide group provided parenting information and the online community network was popular for organizing social activities. Implications include the need for professionals to consider Internet groups as informal support resources. Additionally, increased access to high-speed Internet and computer training is required. Directions for future research are also presented.enAvailable to the World Wide WebInternetSocial networksPostnatalUVic Subject Index::Humanities and Social Sciences::Sociology::FamilyUVic Subject Index::Humanities and Social Sciences::Sociology::Social structureThesis