eHealth Literacy: Extending the Digital Divide to the Realm of Health Information
By Efrat Neter, Esther Brainin. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 2012
775 citations recorded by the source corpus.
Background eHealth literacy is defined as the ability of people to use emerging information and communications technologies to improve or enable health and health care. Objective The goal of this study was to explore whether literacy disparities are diminished or enhanced in the search for health information on the Internet. The study focused on (1) traditional digital divide variables, such as sociodemographic characteristics, digital access, and digital literacy, (2) information search processes, and (3) the outcomes of Internet use for health information purposes. Methods We used a countrywide representative random-digital-dial telephone household survey of the Israeli adult population (18 years and older, N = 4286). We measured eHealth literacy; Internet access; digital literacy; sociodemographic factors; perceived health; presence of chronic diseases; as well as health information sources, content, search strategies, and evaluation criteria used by consumers. Results Respondents who were highly eHealth literate tended to be younger and more educated than their less eHealth-literate counterparts. They were also more active consumers of all types of information on the Internet, used more search strategies, and scrutinized information more carefully than did the less eHealth-literate respondents. Finally, respondents who were highly eHealth literate gained more positive outcomes from the information search in terms of cognitive, instrumental (self-management of health care needs, health behaviors, and better use of health insurance), and interpersonal (interacting with their physician) gains. Conclusions The present study documented differences between respondents high and low in eHealth literacy in terms of background attributes, information consumption, and outcomes of the information search. The association of eHealth literacy with background attributes indicates that the Internet reinforces existing social differences. The more comprehensive and sophisticated use of the Internet and the subsequent increased gains among the high eHealth literate create new inequalities in the domain of digital health information. There is a need to educate at-risk and needy groups (eg, chronically ill) and to design technology in a mode befitting more consumers.
Subfields: General Health Professions, Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/fde8396616a27b8b8b49aa8ecaf94c74eda83516
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In General Health Professions
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Citations in the corpus
- The Digital Divide Among Low-Income Homebound Older Adults: Internet Use Patterns, eHealth Literacy, and Attitudes Toward Computer/Internet Use (2013, background): “Previous studies show that (1) eHealth literacy is lower among older adults, those with lower socioeconomic status, and those with less computer experience, and (2) higher eHealth literacy is associated with more positive outcomes from Internet searches in three domains: cognitive (eg, health knowle”
- New technologies, new disparities: the intersection of electronic health and digital health literacy (2019, neutral): “[11] Similarly, those with lower educational attainment participate in fewer common eHealth behaviors, like tracking diet and physical activity or communicating online with providers.”
- eHealth Literacy and Web 2.0 Health Information Seeking Behaviors Among Baby Boomers and Older Adults (2015, neutral): “Although having a higher level of education has been associated with more frequent use of the Internet for health information [12,59] and greater overall eHealth literacy in some instances [60], previous research indicates that more education is not always predictive of better eHealth literacy…”
- Trust and Credibility in Web-Based Health Information: A Review and Agenda for Future Research (2017, background): “…skills” or low health literacy enhance consumers’ vulnerability [16,17], and that individuals with higher eHealth literacy gain more positive outcomes from health information searching including improved self-management of health care needs and more effective interactions with their physician [18].”
- Development of the Digital Health Literacy Instrument: Measuring a Broad Spectrum of Health 1.0 and Health 2.0 Skills (2017, methodology): “The relationship between digital skills and both age and education is still present, possibly due to less computer and Internet use [4,43].”
- Predictors of eHealth Usage: Insights on The Digital Divide From the Health Information National Trends Survey 2012 (2014, background): “Research is emerging that advocates matching eHealth technology to the eHealth literacy (defined as “the ability to seek, find, understand, and appraise health information from electronic sources and apply knowledge gained to addressing or solving a health problem”) of the intended user [50-52].”
- Understanding factors affecting patient and public engagement and recruitment to digital health interventions: a systematic review of qualitative studies (2016, neutral): “Literacy skills [62–64] and being able to pay for the technology [65] do impact on people’s ability to interact with and use DHIs, which is consistent with the findings of our review.”