Health Literacy in Taiwan: A Population-Based Study

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Health Services Research
• Psychometrics

Background:

• Limited data exists on population health literacy (HL) in Asian countries.
• Assessing HL is crucial for understanding health disparities and informing public health interventions.
• The European Health Literacy Survey Questionnaire (HLS-EU-Q) is a widely used instrument, but its Mandarin version needed validation for Taiwan.

Purpose of the Study:

• To validate the Mandarin version of the European Health Literacy Survey Questionnaire (HLS-EU-Q) for the general population in Taiwan.
• To assess the general health literacy level of the Taiwanese population.
• To identify factors associated with general health literacy in Taiwan.

Main Methods:

• A multistage stratification random sampling method was employed to recruit 2989 participants aged 15 and above in Taiwan.
• Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was used to assess the construct validity of the Mandarin HLS-EU-Q.
• Multivariate regression analysis was conducted to identify factors associated with general health literacy.

Main Results:

• The Mandarin HLS-EU-Q demonstrated excellent model data fit indices, confirming its validity.
• The general health literacy level of the Taiwanese population was found to be 34.4 ± 6.6 on a 50-point scale.
• Higher general HL was significantly associated with better ability to pay for medication, higher perceived social status, more frequent engagement with health-related media, community involvement, and younger age.

Conclusions:

• The Mandarin HLS-EU-Q is a valid and useful tool for assessing health literacy and its associated factors in the general population of Taiwan.
• Health literacy in Taiwan is influenced by socioeconomic status, health behaviors, and healthcare accessibility.
• Further research is needed to explore HL in diverse Asian populations.