Candid

well here is an idea. and it might have already been thought about, and/or just you don't want to do it. but what the heck, i'll go anyway:


how about an advice "service" on AO.

you either have some sort of thread or person, people tell them their problems and anonymously they try to help.

maybe get a group of people so they can help one another.

i just think AO is like a family, and we should help each other out.

and if it doesn't work out, then just stop.


just an idea. I like it. maybe you do too.

Edit by Hammer: Added poll for member.

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Chiefblackhammer

Personally I like the idea IF regulated, some people are going to abuse the feature but for others it will be very useful and FOR those people we should offer this. Good or bad I know I would offer my thoughts and ideas to those willing to hear them.

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!Akura13

Oh, this would deffinatly be an excellent idea! I'd love to share my ideas and situations and I'd love to help people! I'd also like to know other's veiws on a metter, and this is the perfect idea! I would deffinatly loev to get an advice service up here on AO! ^^

aceman67

Don't we already have this? I mean, people are always starting threads asking for advice from what anime to watch to how to handle relationship problems.

Not really needed in my opinion.

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Legend

Well I'm not big on the idea, but if enough folks want it meaning this site has the demand we should have it. Right now most threads that seek advice could be closed or deemed as journal material. Considering how the new blog system does not give users the same exposure as before, maybe it's something to think about.

I am basing this that the thread starter is asking on advice in life and not animes to watch. If we have this so call focus group we can rid of all the threads all together.

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tsurara

This is dangerous.

If someone with real, SUBSTANTIAL issues sees this site or it's members as a legitimate source of support or advice; we end up with some pretty big issues at hand.

I'm not talking "I hate my life and want to die, so tell me how awesome I am." or "I'm ugly, please look at these pictures I'm spamming and hit on me." Which is probably what we'd get the most of. I'm talking "I think I'm a lesbian." "My parents hit me." "I think I'm really going to commit suicide." or "I want to kill my parents."

Very few people here are trained as crisis counsellors and quite a few have non-neutral viewpoints (influenced by experience, religion, whatever). The wrong advice does much more harm than good--and the maturity level here leaves a bit to be desired.

We sign no contracts guaranteeing the privacy of those who speak to us... and in general we can't offer any better advice than "talk to someone qualified to help you".

At best, it would turn into drama-whore central.
At worst, we get someone killed with bad advice.

Absolutely not.

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Dragon Ball

I think it's a nice idea. Everyone can do with a lending hand or just another angle on things. But like aceman said, isn't this already part of being active in the forums.

Who would give the advice?

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zyta

I can help give advice. I was a junior counselor in High School dealing with said problems that tsu stated. Also took Psychology in college, plus i always keep my conversations with other people secret, unless the other gives the okay.

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Chiefblackhammer

Like Legend stated not all topics are allowed to be asked here on AO, if too personal than we close the thread and state it is “journal” material, so unless the thread asks an abstract question (which in some cases aren’t going to help the person with their situation) then it isn’t allowed here. This allows people to get more specific help to things that they just want a vast array of opinions on.

We can always provide a disclaimer that would by virtue of using the site remove liability for damages which may occur from taking the advice of the members of this site. Have the user post a standardize disclaimer with their posts that the advice that they are given will not hold them to liability.

Basically the disclaimer would be like this:

Also just because it isn’t a professional opinion doesn’t mean it will be bad or that the person will take it even if it was. I also disagree that those with influence from “experience, religion, whatever” are going to automatically be “non-neutral” giving biased, skewed or harmful advice just because they have external influences. As someone who has actually studied Sociology I can tell you that if that was true no one would ever be qualified to give an opinion because all ANY OF US have to base or even form opinions on is experiences, religion or other’s opinions all influenced heavily by those around us.

If anything it is the exposure to those experiences, religion or other’s opinions that MAKES us qualified to speak on them. After all right or wrong is a matter of your personal view point and how they fit into social standards in society.

Neutrality of opinion by certified counselors, psychiatrist or your average Joe isn’t about not having influence but from not holding one train of thoughts or concepts as absolute, realizing there are many ways to accomplish the same thing and for different people varying methods will be affective as well as void.

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tsurara

Pretty much all of us took Psychology in college. It's a GEN-ED requirement for most universities. That doesn't mean we paid attention, or learned anything about crisis mangament.

I'm trained as a "youth counsellor" too... And the FIRST thing we learned in training for our crisis line was that people who have REAL problems generally don't feel comfortable talking about those problems honestly in public. The last thing someone who feels scared or ashamed wants is a public thread to be kept for posterity on the internet, searchable by anyone out there on any search-engine, member or not, that's going to incriminate them later.

In the age of cyber-bullying, jobs canvasing their potential employees through google searches, etc. I think we'd be offering a false sense of security in offering advice to those who would REALLY need it.

All someone needs to do is post up that they might be gay and we'll have half a dozen Conservative Christians tell them they're going to hell, more people write manifestos on how gays have the right to be whoever they are, a bunch of yaoi fangirls convincing them to "Go for it" and no one at all actually doing what they SHOULD be: which is just listening and then referring the troubled person to a specialist, their parents or groups that might be able to help them. Not to mention what happens when a high school friend "stumbles" on this site, finds out their classmate might be queer and then starts spreading it around school the next day.

I'm against creating the illusion that we are in any position to help people who are genuinely troubled. We aren't. It's an entertainment forum on the internet.

Discussions about general issues can already go in cyber lounge.

Creating a forum just for little kids to give soap-box advice is only going to create a place to shine the spotlight on attention-whores who we've been trying to weed out by making personal **** journal material in the first place while creating a false sense of security/reality/friendship for younger members who may not be able to distinguish between an internet forum and actual psychological help.

And what does this have to do with anime and manga?! Can we make some additions to the site that are actually relevant to it's topic for once? O_o;

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abby724

I don't think we need another section devoted to merely problems; one could simply start a new thread in the Cyber Lounge, could they not?

This is an anime & manga community... Not a therapist's office, unfortunately. And while I personally think it'd be pleasant to get free, online, professional psychological help, it's a little... Well, how many people do you think that go here are qualified enough to give that sort of help? Sure, there may be people here who understand your problems —when it comes to psychological problems, I'm chock full of them :laughs:—, but I doubt that same person can recommend you on what sort of antidepressants and whatnot that you should take.

I've been to forums with sections like this... Not pretty. Soapbox full of hormones, juvenile insecurities, and no real help whatsoever.

And regarding serious —the course of my life most definitely depends on it— problems that don't deal with mental fragility and unstability... Well, seeing as most of us on here would never probably meet that person in real life or see their problems, I don't think advice for those sort of problems would be useful often, either.

I suggest that people seek out counselors, family members, et cetera than an anime/manga forum for help if they'll benefit most from the former.

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