Internet skill-related problems in accessing online health information

Area of Science:

• Health Informatics
• Digital Health Literacy
• Human-Computer Interaction

Background:

• The internet offers vast health information, but user skill gaps create barriers to access.
• Understanding user challenges is crucial for effective online health information dissemination.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify specific skill-related problems users encounter when accessing online health information.
• To investigate how factors like age and education influence these skill-related problems.

Main Methods:

• A performance test involving 88 subjects completing health-related internet tasks.
• Random sampling from a telephone book with stratified quotas for gender, age, and education.
• Nine distinct internet-based health assignments were administered to each participant.

Main Results:

• The general population faces significant challenges with information and strategic internet skills.
• Operational and formal skill deficits were more common among older adults and those with lower education levels.
• While younger individuals had fewer operational issues, older adults demonstrated better judgment in source selection and decision-making.

Conclusions:

• Despite growing online health resources, widespread internet skill deficits, especially in information and strategic areas, persist.
• These skill gaps affect all demographics, including younger, ostensibly tech-savvy individuals.
• The findings necessitate policy interventions to address low levels of internet proficiency for health information access.