隨著網路科技的進步，人們對網路健康諮詢的需求日漸增長。雖然已有許多研究探究醫療網路社群提供健康資訊（如：疾病預防或治療）或情感社會支持的功能，但甚少論及愛滋網站的功能，故本研究分析台灣某愛滋網站使用者尋求協助的貼文內容，並將其與梅毒、青少年懷孕、肺結核、和癌症等四種醫療諮商網站語料比較，以期了解網路愛滋諮商使用者的社會心理特質及愛滋諮商網站之功能。透過分析來自愛滋網站留言版的82篇語料和其他四個醫療網站的216篇貼文，本研究發現以下五個言談模式：（1）和其他四個網站相比，愛滋諮商留言板使用者有最高的確診需求（89%，其他網站尋求確診分別為梅毒48%、肺結核34%、懷孕機率30%、癌症網站則僅有2%）。（2）然而這些尋求確診的案例卻顯得多此一舉，因為約20%的使用者在貼文內容中提到自己其實已經做過愛滋檢測，部分甚至確認檢測結果為陰性（即未感染），卻仍透露對網路診斷的強烈需求。（3）在貼文中提到的可能感染愛滋傳染途徑有54%與性行為相關，但也有高達42%的傳染途徑是一般不認為是可能會造成感染的途徑。（4）和其他四個網站相比，愛滋諮商網站使用者明顯偏好使用「非人名感」（59%；如：〝1234567〞、〝小酒館〞）、「無性別感」（62%；如：〝匿名者〞、〝TMAC〞）或帶有負面情緒(34%；如：〝煎熬〞、〝日也想夜也想〞)之使用者名稱。（5）雖然愛滋網站中的82個使用者名稱多屬於「無性別感」名稱（62%），然而其餘的名稱則含「男性感」（33%；如：〝阿虎〞、〝Sam〞）的名稱多於含「女性感」（6%；如：〝Fay〞、〝Daisy〞）。此外，針對愛滋諮商網站使用者的社會心理特質，我們發現了以下特質：（1）大部分使用者所擔憂的可能感染途徑為性行為、（2）他們大多具有高愛滋素養、高匿名感需求和高愛滋意識感、（3）而主要目的皆為尋求虛擬診斷。這些研究成果不僅對網路健康言談領域有所貢獻，也可作為針對各種高危險族群所制定的相關愛滋預防措施之參考。
將上述HIV/AIDS貼文者的言談模式並與其他四個醫療網站比較後，我們認為台灣社會對傳統華人文化認定「非正常」性行為(即：同性戀、多重性伴侶或婚前性行為）、傳染性疾病（如：愛滋、梅毒或肺結核），或死亡性相對較高的疾病（如：愛滋或癌症）貼上的多重汙名標籤驅使這些擁有「高愛滋素養」、「高匿名感需求」和「高愛滋意識感」或甚至可能為「愛滋慮病者」的使用者至愛滋網站尋求「虛擬診斷」。換句話說，不同於其他健康網站常扮演的提供醫療資訊或社會支持的角色，本研究中的愛滋網站主要功能為提供「保護傘」，亦即使用者不需透露自己的任何社會身分，免於受到污名侵擾，即可得到是否感染愛滋的虛擬診斷。本研究呈現了與愛滋相關的污名對潛在愛滋感染者的言談使用影響，譬如使用者該如何一邊保護自己的社會身分、傳達自己的焦慮，更同時滿足他們的醫療需求。

With the advances in Internet technology, there is a dramatic increase of reliance on online healthcare consultation, especially for stigmatized diseases or health conditions. While the search for health information on disease prevention or treatment and social support are two commonly documented functions of most health forums, those of HIV/AIDS are not well explored. To fill this gap, the present study examined discourse patterns by users of an HIV/AIDS forum based in Taiwan, with a comparison of those by users of other health forum, including syphilis, teen pregnancy, tuberculosis (TB), and cancer. With this comparative approach, we aim to see the psychosocial characteristics of users of the HIV/AIDS forum and their perception of the forum’s functions. By examining 82 users’ postings on the HIV/AIDS forum and a total of 216 postings on the other four medical consultation forums, our analysis manifests the following five discourse patterns. (1) Compared to the other four forums, users of the HIV/AIDS forum displayed the highest need for diagnosing or confirming their HIV infection status (i.e. 89%, as compared to 48% for diagnosing a syphilis infection status, 34% for TB infection, 30% for pregnancy status, and 2% for cancer status). (2) Such a strong need for an online diagnosis perceived by the HIV/AIDS forum users might appear to be “redundant” or “ungrounded”, as 20% of their posting actually revealed that their “HIV negative status” (i.e. they are HIV free) were already confirmed by previous tests. (3) About 54% of the suspected HIV transmission routes described in the users’ postings are sex-related behaviors, and 42% are routes which are generally not considered as possible ones. (4) Compared to the other four forums, users of the HIV/AIDS forum also displayed a highest preference for formulating their usernames which do not carry a sense of human name (59%, e.g. “1234567” or “小酒館/Small Inn”) or a sense of gender (61%, e.g. “匿名者/Anonymous Person” or “TMAC”), but convey a sense of emotional turmoil (34%, e.g. “煎熬/Suffering” or “日也想夜也想/Worry Day And Night”). (5) While the majority of the 82 usernames of the HIV/AIDS forum are “genderless” (61%), the rest of them are more constructed with a masculine sense (33%, e.g. “阿虎/A-hu” or “Sam”) than a feminine sense (6%, e.g. “Fay” or “Daisy”). Also the psychosocial features of users of the HIV/AIDS forum revealed in our study showed that they were: (1) mainly (male) individuals worrying about HIV transmission via sexual behavior, and (2) individuals with a high HIV/AIDS literacy, strong need for perceived anonymity, strong feeling of being HIV positive, and (3) individuals with a unanimous goal of looking for virtual diagnosis. These findings may shed a light for medical professionals in public health regarding HIV/AIDS prevention for high-risk groups of different social backgrounds.
With the above discourse findings in compared the HIV/AIDS forum with four medical consultation forums based in Taiwan, we argued that multiple levels of stigma rooted in Taiwanese society toward “abnormal” sexual behaviors (e.g. homo, excessive, pre-marital sex), infectious disease (e.g. AIDS, syphilis, or TB), or relatively high mortality disease (e.g. AIDS or cancer) have driven individuals with “high HIV/AIDS literacy,” “a strong need for perceived anonymity” and “a strong feeling of being HIV positive” (even to the point of being “an AIDS worried-well or AIDS phobia”) to look for “virtual diagnosis” on the HIV/AIDS forum.
In other words, unlike the functions of providing health information or social support of other health forums observed in previous studies, that of the HIV/AIDS forum perceived by users in our study is the “umbrella” that frees them from disclosing any social identity, shields them from tremendous stigma, and reassures them with a virtual diagnosis.
This study contributes to the field of Internet health discourse in the following way. It demonstrates how the strong stigma associated with HIV/AIDS may drive its potential sufferers to construct language use as a way to protect their social identity, to reveal their anxiety, and also to serve their needs for medical help.

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