[Paper Review] Avoiding Social Judgment, Seeking Privacy: Investigating why Mothers Shift from Facebook Groups to Large Language Models

Shayla Sharmin, Sadia Afrin|arXiv (Cornell University)|Feb 15, 2026

Digital Mental Health Interventions0 citations

TL;DR

The paper investigates why mothers move from Facebook parenting groups to large language models (LLMs), revealing that social judgment and privacy concerns in groups drive the shift, while LLMs offer non-judgmental, private, and prompt support.

ABSTRACT

Social media platforms, especially Facebook parenting groups, have long been used as informal support networks for mothers seeking advice and reassurance. However, growing concerns about social judgment, privacy exposure, and unreliable information are changing how mothers seek help. This exploratory mixed-method study examines why mothers are moving from Facebook parenting groups to large language models such as ChatGPT and Gemini. We conducted a cross-sectional online survey of 109 mothers. Results show that 41.3% of participants avoided Facebook parenting groups because they expected judgment from others. This difference was statistically significant across location and family structure. Mothers living in their home country and those in joint families were more likely to avoid Facebook groups. Qualitative findings revealed three themes: social judgment and exposure, LLMs as safe and private spaces, and quick and structured support. Participants described LLMs as immediate, emotionally safe, and reliable alternatives that reduce social risk when asking for help. Rather than replacing human support, LLMs appear to fill emotional and practical gaps within existing support systems. These findings show a change in maternal digital support and highlight the need to design LLM systems that support both information and emotional safety.

Motivation & Objective

• Identify social and domestic factors that lead mothers to avoid Facebook parenting groups.
• Characterize the functional and psychological affordances of LLM-based tools that feel safer for help-seeking.
• Examine how anonymity on social platforms compares with the privacy offered by LLMs in sensitive parenting discussions.
• Contextualize findings within theoretical frameworks of social support, cognitive dissonance, TAM, and motivated information management.

Proposed method

• Conducted an exploratory cross-sectional online survey (n=109) of pregnant women and mothers from South Asia.
• Used a mixed-method approach with five-item questionnaire: one closed-ended item and four open-ended items.
• Performed descriptive statistics and chi-square tests for demographic associations.
• Applied inductive thematic analysis to open-ended responses to extract themes.
• Ensured anonymity; did not collect IPs or identifying information; ethical considerations followed.

Figure 1: Avoidance of Facebook Parenting Groups to Escape Mom-Shaming (N=109). Responses indicate whether participants avoid asking questions in Facebook parenting groups in favor of LLMs such as ChatGPT or Gemini.

Experimental results

Research questions

• RQ1 RQ1: How do family structure and residential setting shape mothers’ avoidance of Facebook parenting groups?
• RQ2 RQ2: What functional and psychological affordances of LLM-based tools make these systems feel safer or more comfortable for help-seeking?
• RQ3 RQ3: How do mothers distinguish between anonymity on social media platforms and the privacy offered by LLM-based tools when discussing sensitive parenting concerns?

Key findings

• 41.3% of participants (n=45) actively avoided Facebook parenting groups in favor of LLMs.
• Home-country residents were more likely to avoid Facebook groups than those living abroad, with a significant association (χ2(2, N=109)=9.23, p=0.01, Cramér’s V=0.291).
• Participants from joint/extended families showed higher avoidance of Facebook groups than those from nuclear families (χ2(2, N=109)=12.003, p=0.002, Cramér’s V=0.332).
• Qualitative themes identified: anticipated social judgment and exposure in Facebook groups; LLMs as non-judgmental, private spaces; and LLMs offering responsiveness and structured support.
• Open-ended responses highlighted privacy, non-judgmental interaction, immediacy of responses, and perceived reliability of LLMs as drivers for adoption.

Figure 2: (Left) Avoidance of Facebook Parenting Groups by Location. Responses are grouped by whether participants live in their home country (urban, rural, or suburban areas) or abroad. (Right) Avoidance of Facebook Parenting Groups by Family Structure. Responses are grouped by nuclear versus joint