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Background People’s health-related knowledge influences health outcomes, as this knowledge may influence whether individuals follow advice from their doctors or public health agencies. Yet, little attention has been paid to where people obtain health information and how these information sources relate to the quality of knowledge. Objective We aim to discover what information sources people use to learn about health conditions, how these sources relate to the quality of their health knowledge, and how both the number of information sources and health knowledge change over time. Methods We surveyed 200 different individuals at 12 time points from March through September 2020. At each time point, we elicited participants’ knowledge about causes, risk factors, and preventative interventions for 8 viral (Ebola, common cold, COVID-19, Zika) and nonviral (food allergies, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis [ALS], strep throat, stroke) illnesses. Participants were further asked how they learned about each illness and to rate how much they trust various sources of health information. Results We found that participants used different information sources to obtain health information about common illnesses (food allergies, strep throat, stroke) compared to emerging illnesses (Ebola, common cold, COVID-19, Zika). Participants relied mainly on news media, government agencies, and social media for information about emerging illnesses, while learning about common illnesses from family, friends, and medical professionals. Participants relied on social media for information about COVID-19, with their knowledge accuracy of COVID-19 declining over the course of the pandemic. The number of information sources participants used was positively correlated with health knowledge quality, though there was no relationship with the specific source types consulted. Conclusions Building on prior work on health information seeking and factors affecting health knowledge, we now find that people systematically consult different types of information sources by illness type and that the number of information sources people use affects the quality of individuals’ health knowledge. Interventions to disseminate health information may need to be targeted to where individuals are likely to seek out information, and these information sources differ systematically by illness type.
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“I Don’t Just Take Whatever They Hand to Me”: How Women Recently Released from Incarceration Access Internet Health Information
This project sought to understand how women transitioning from incarceration, a time of extreme vulnerability to health problems and mortality, find health information online and which sources they trust and use. We conducted semi-structured interviews by telephone or in person with 74 previously incarcerated women from September 2019 to May 2020. We performed qualitative, thematic analysis of the interviews. Most of our participants used the internet to search for health information and were enthusiastic about the speed and ease of online health information. Perceptions of reliability of the information and whether they would recommend it to friends and family varied. Many participants wanted additional reliable sources of health information and ways to verify the online health information. Findings may be used to develop digital health literacy interventions that this vulnerable group of women need for transitioning back into communities and everyday life.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1907002
- PAR ID:
- 10337529
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Women & Criminal Justice
- ISSN:
- 0897-4454
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 1 to 17
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
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Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.1080/08974454.2022.2040692
