Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 15, 2025
Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Hyperscanning Study in Psychological Counseling
Published on: January 17, 2025
Understanding cancer information-scanning behavior on WeChat among young Chinese adults: Applying a modified
QianYing Ma1,2,3, Jen-Sern Tham1,4, Rosmiza Bidin1
1Department of Communication, Faculty of Modern Languages and Communication, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia.
Objective:
Given the increasing incidence of cancer among younger populations and the prominent role of WeChat in health information acquisition, young Chinese adults are more likely to encounter and engage with cancer-related information on WeChat. However, limited empirical research has examined the motivations behind young adults'-cancer information-scanning behavior (CISB) on this platform. This study aims to address this gap by applying the Comprehensive Model of Information Seeking (CMIS) to identify the key predictors of CISB among young Chinese adults.
Methods:
An online cross-sectional survey was conducted on WeChat from October 14 to October 24, 2023, targeting young Chinese adults ages 18-44. Using convenience and snowball sampling methods, a total of 1484 valid responses were collected.
Results:
Structural equation modeling (SEM) indicated that perceived susceptibility, WeChat self-efficacy, and perceived credibility directly predicted perceived utility, whereas perceived severity did not. Additionally, both perceived credibility and perceived utility significantly predicted CISB on WeChat. Mediation analysis employing PROCESS Macro revealed that perceived utility mediated the relationships between health-related factors (i.e., perceived susceptibility, severity, and WeChat self-efficacy) and CISB on WeChat.
Conclusions:
The findings highlight the mediating and enhancing role of perceived utility and extend CMIS applicability in the context of CISB on WeChat. These findings provide practical implications for policymakers and health professionals to create more effective cancer communication strategies.
Related Concept Videos
02:43Mouse Models of Cancer Study
The development of transgenic, knockout, and knock-in mice has led to an exponential increase in their use as model organisms in research,...
02:57Targeted Cancer Therapies
There are several types of targeted therapies against...
01:21Cancer Survival Analysis
01:33Cancer-Critical Genes I: Proto-oncogenes
When the function of certain critical genes, especially those involved in cell cycle regulation and cell growth signaling cascades, gets disrupted, it upsets the cell cycle progression. Such cells with unchecked cell cycles start proliferating uncontrollably and eventually develop into tumors.
Such genes that act...
01:05Cancer-Critical Genes II: Tumor Suppressor Genes
When the function of certain critical genes, especially those involved in cell cycle regulation and cell growth signaling cascades, gets disrupted, it upsets the cell cycle progression. Such cells with unchecked cell cycles start proliferating uncontrollably and eventually develop into tumors.
Such genes that act...
02:50Combination Therapies and Personalized Medicine
The combination of the drug acetazolamide and sulforaphane is a good example of combination therapy to treat cancer. The cells in the interior of a large tumor often die due to the hypoxic and...