Objective: This paper investigates the collective psychological empowerment of users of online health communities, which has been often overlooked in literature. Drawing on the theories of empowerment in the context of community psychology, it explores the factors - that are also an important characteristic of online health communities - that are associated with the collective psychological empowerment of online health community users. Methods: Four factors of collective empowerment were analysed and evaluated using multiple linear regression on the data collected at the end of 2010 through a web survey on a non-probability sample (n = 235) of active participants in the web forums on Med.over.net, the largest online health community in Slovenia. Among them 8.5% were male, 49.7% had some kind of university education and 41.5% were married respondents with a mean age of 35.1 years (SD = 9.1). Results: The study found that the theoretical model of factors adequately fits the data (F = 8.65, df = 8, p < 0.001), explaining 23.4% of the variability of collective empowerment. Sense of community (beta = 0.279, p < 0.001), organisational involvement in community activities (0.194, 0.001), and perceived online health community participation in the wider environment (0.157, 0.02) contribute to the collective empowerment of users of the online health community Med.over.net. Conversely, the frequency of posting messages to online health forum discussions is not associated with collective empowerment (0.029, 0.65). Conclusion: In order to improve the collective empowerment of users of online health communities, it is necessary first of all to build on the quality of relationships between its members, involve them in strategic decisions of the community and foster online health community involvement in the wider social environment, since the participation of users in online communities itself does not lead to a higher level of their collective empowerment.
