The characteristics and motivations of online health information seekers: Cross-sectional survey and qualitative interview study

Journal of Medical Internet Research

Volumn 13, Issue 1, 2011, Pages

  Powell, John ^a   Inglis, Nadia ^a   Ronnie, Jennifer ^a   Large, Shirley ^b  

^a UNIVERSITY OF WARWICK   (United Kingdom)

^b NHS Direct   (United Kingdom)

Author keywords

Health services research; Information seeking behaviour; Internet; Patient provider communication

Indexed keywords

ADULT; ARTICLE; CONFIDENTIALITY; CONSUMER HEALTH INFORMATION; CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY; FEMALE; HEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH; HUMAN; INFORMATION SEEKING; INTERNET; INTERVIEW; MALE; MIDDLE AGED; MOTIVATION; PUBLIC HEALTH; QUESTIONNAIRE; RISK ASSESSMENT; UNITED KINGDOM;

ADULT; CONFIDENTIALITY; CONSUMER HEALTH INFORMATION; CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDIES; FEMALE; GREAT BRITAIN; HEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH; HUMANS; INFORMATION SEEKING BEHAVIOR; INTERNET; INTERVIEWS AS TOPIC; MALE; MIDDLE AGED; MOTIVATION; NATIONAL HEALTH PROGRAMS; QUESTIONNAIRES; RISK ASSESSMENT; YOUNG ADULT;

EID: 79953078204     PISSN: None     EISSN: 14388871     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.2196/jmir.1600     Document Type: Article

References (40)

1. Dutton WH, Helsper EJ, Gerber MM. Oxford Internet Survey. 2009. Report: The Internet in Britain 2009 URL: http://microsites.oii.ox.ac.uk/oxis/ [accessed 2010-06-23] [WebCite Cache ID 5qhaRndTy]
2. Dutton WH, di Gennero C, Millwood Hargrave A. Oxford Internet Survey . 2005. Report: The Internet in Britain URL: http://microsites.oii.ox.ac.uk/oxis/ [accessed 2010-06-23] [WebCite Cache ID 5qhaRndTy]
3. Andreassen HK, Bujnowska-Fedak MM, Chronaki CE, Dumitru RC, Pudule I, Santana S, et al. European citizens' use of E-health services: a study of seven countries. BMC Public Health 2007;7:53 [FREE Full text] [doi: 10.1186/1471-2458-7-53] [Medline: 17425798]
4. Fox S, Jones S. The social life of health information. Washington, DC: Pew Internet & American Life Project; 2009 Jun
5. URL: http://www.pewinternet.org/~/media//Files/Reports/2009/PIP-Health- 2009.pdf [accessed 2010-12-07] [WebCite Cache ID 5uno4xyeW]
6. Kummervold PE, Chronaki CE, Lausen B, Prokosch HU, Rasmussen J, Santana S, et al. eHealth trends in Europe 2005-2007: a population-based survey. J Med Internet Res 2008;10(4):e42 [FREE Full text] [doi: 10.2196/jmir.1023] [Medline: 19017584]
7. NHS Direct. History of NHS Direct URL: http://www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk/ article.aspx?name=HistoryOfNHSDirect [accessed 2010-06-23] [WebCite Cache ID 5qhbPpIdC]
8. Dumitru RC, Bürkle T, Potapov S, Lausen B, Wiese B, Prokosch HU. Use and perception of internet for health related purposes in Germany: results of a national survey. Int J Public Health 2007;52(5):275-285. [Medline: 18030943] (Pubitemid 47526986)
9. Lemire M, Sicotte C, Paré G. Internet use and the logics of personal empowerment in health. Health Policy 2008 Oct;88(1):130-140. [doi: 10.1016/j.healthpol.2008.03.006] [Medline: 18436330]
10. Ybarra M, Suman M. Reasons, assessments and actions taken: sex and age differences in uses of Internet health information. Health Educ Res 2008 Jun;23(3):512-521 [FREE Full text] [doi: 10.1093/her/cyl062] [Medline: 16880222] (Pubitemid 351786605)
11. Lemire M, Paré G, Sicotte C, Harvey C. Determinants of Internet use as a preferred source of information on personal health. Int J Med Inform 2008 Nov;77(11):723-734. [doi: 10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2008.03.002] [Medline: 18434246]
12. Atkinson NL, Saperstein SL, Pleis J. Using the internet for health-related activities: findings from a national probability sample. J Med Internet Res 2009;11(1):e4 [FREE Full text] [doi: 10.2196/jmir.1035] [Medline: 19275980]
13. Powell JA, Darvell M, Gray JA. The doctor, the patient and the world-wide web: how the internet is changing healthcare. J R Soc Med 2003 Feb;96(2):74-76 [FREE Full text] [Medline: 12562977] (Pubitemid 36683379)
14. Hardey M. Doctor in the house: the Internet as a source of lay health knowledge and the challenge to expertise. Sociol Health Illn 1999;21(6):820-835.
15. Eysenbach G, Powell J, Kuss O, Sa ER. Empirical studies assessing the quality of health information for consumers on the world wide web: a systematic review. JAMA 2002;287(20):2691-2700 [FREE Full text] [Medline: 12020305] (Pubitemid 34533548)
16. Fox NJ, Ward KJ, O'Rourke AJ. The 'expert patient': empowerment or medical dominance? The case of weight loss, pharmaceutical drugs and the Internet. Soc Sci Med 2005 Mar;60(6):1299-1309. [doi: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2004. 07.005] [Medline: 15626525] (Pubitemid 40038759)
17. Wald HS, Dube CE, Anthony DC. Untangling the Web - the impact of Internet use on health care and the physician-patient relationship. Patient Educ Couns 2007 Nov;68(3):218-224. [doi: 10.1016/j.pec.2007.05.016] [Medline: 17920226] (Pubitemid 47539838)
18. Gerber BS, Eiser AR. The patient physician relationship in the Internet age: future prospects and the research agenda. J Med Internet Res 2001;3(2):E15 [FREE Full text] [doi: 10.2196/jmir.3.2.e15] [Medline: 11720957]
19. Strauss A, Corbin J. In: Corbin J, editor. Basics of Qualitative Research: Techniques and Procedures for Developing Grounded Theory. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications; 1998.
20. The NHS Information Centre for Health and Social Care. 2009. Health Survey for England 2008: Adult Trend Tables 2008 URL: http://www.ic.nhs.uk/ statistics-and-data-collections/health-and-lifestyles-related-surveys/ health-survey-for-england/health-survey-for-england-2008-trend-tables [accessed 2010-08-09] [WebCite Cache ID 5rrTdaQOz]
21. Baker L, Wagner TH, Singer S, Bundorf MK. Use of the Internet and e-mail for health care information: results from a national survey. JAMA 2003 May 14;289(18):2400-2406 [FREE Full text] [doi: 10.1001/jama.289.18.2400] [Medline: 12746364] (Pubitemid 37430173)
22. Ybarra ML, Suman M. Help seeking behavior and the Internet: a national survey. Int J Med Inform 2006 Jan;75(1):29-41. [doi: 10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2005.07. 029] [Medline: 16129659] (Pubitemid 43075560)
23. Cotten SR, Gupta SS. Characteristics of online and offline health information seekers and factors that discriminate between them. Soc Sci Med 2004 Nov;59(9):1795-1806. [doi: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2004.02.020] [Medline: 15312915] (Pubitemid 39093781)
24. Bansil P, Keenan NL, Zlot AI, Gilliland JC. Health-related information on the Web: results from the HealthStyles Survey, 2002-2003. Prev Chronic Dis 2006 Apr;3(2):A36 [FREE Full text] [Medline: 16539777]
25. Houston TK, Allison JJ. Users of Internet health information: differences by health status. J Med Internet Res 2002;4(2):E7 [FREE Full text] [doi: 10.2196/jmir.4.2.e7] [Medline: 12554554]
26. Rice RE. Influences, usage, and outcomes of Internet health information searching: multivariate results from the Pew surveys. Int J Med Inform 2006 Jan;75(1):8-28. [doi: 10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2005.07.032] [Medline: 16125453] (Pubitemid 43075559)
27. Nettleton S, Burrows R, O'Malley L. The mundane realities of the everyday lay use of the internet for health, and their consequences for media convergence. Sociol Health Illn 2005 Nov;27(7):972-992. [doi: 10.1111/j.1467-9566.2005.00466.x] [Medline: 16313525] (Pubitemid 41796892)
28. Broom A, Tovey P. The role of the Internet in cancer patients' engagement with complementary and alternative treatments. Health (London) 2008 Apr;12(2):139-155. [doi: 10.1177/1363459307086841] [Medline: 18400826]
29. Hart A, Henwood F, Wyatt S. The role of the Internet in patient-practitioner relationships: findings from a qualitative research study. J Med Internet Res 2004 Sep 30;6(3):e36 [FREE Full text] [doi: 10.2196/jmir.6.3.e36] [Medline: 15471762]
30. Nettleton S, Burrows R. E-scaped medicine? Information, reflexivity and health. Critical Social Policy 2003;23(2):165-185. [doi: 10.1177/ 0261018303023002003] (Pubitemid 36650235)
31. Pandey SK, Hart JJ, Tiwary S. Women's health and the internet: understanding emerging trends and implications. Soc Sci Med 2003 Jan;56(1):179-191. [Medline: 12435560] (Pubitemid 35341675)
32. Kivits J. Everyday health and the internet: a mediated health perspective on health information seeking. Sociol Health Illn 2009 Jul;31(5):673-687. [doi: 10.1111/j.1467-9566.2008.01153.x] [Medline: 19220804]
33. Sommerhalder K, Abraham A, Zufferey MC, Barth J, Abel T. Internet information and medical consultations: experiences from patients' and physicians' perspectives. Patient Educ Couns 2009 Nov;77(2):266-271. [doi: 10.1016/j.pec.2009.03.028] [Medline: 19411157]
34. McMullan M. Patients using the Internet to obtain health information: how this affects the patient-health professional relationship. Patient Educ Couns 2006 Oct;63(1-2):24-28. [doi: 10.1016/j.pec.2005.10.006] [Medline: 16406474] (Pubitemid 44331549)
35. Powell J, Clarke A. Information in mental health: qualitative study of mental health service users. Health Expect 2006 Dec;9(4):359-365. [doi: 10.1111/j.1369-7625.2006.00403.x] [Medline: 17083562] (Pubitemid 44701039)
36. Eysenbach G, Köhler C. How do consumers search for and appraise health information on the world wide web? Qualitative study using focus groups, usability tests, and in-depth interviews. BMJ 2002 Mar 9;324(7337):573-577 [FREE Full text] [Medline: 11884321] (Pubitemid 34214337)
37. Korp P. Health on the Internet: implications for health promotion. Health Educ Res 2006 Feb;21(1):78-86 [FREE Full text] [doi: 10.1093/her/cyh043] [Medline: 15994845] (Pubitemid 43244084)
38. Bessière K, Pressman S, Kiesler S, Kraut R. Effects of internet use on health and depression: a longitudinal study. J Med Internet Res 2010;12(1):e6 [FREE Full text] [doi: 10.2196/jmir.1149] [Medline: 20228047]
39. Norman CD, Skinner HA. eHealth literacy: essential skills for consumer health in a networked world. J Med Internet Res 2006;8(2):e9 [FREE Full text] [doi: 10.2196/jmir.8.2.e9] [Medline: 16867972]
40. Coulter A. Partnerships with patients: the pros and cons of shared clinical decision-making. J Health Serv Res Policy 1997 Apr;2(2):112-121. [Medline: 10180362] (Pubitemid 27196938)