Funded by NIDDK RO1 DK53942 Women’s Use of the Internet for Health Information: The Impact of Selected Demographic and Health Variables Mary L. Klem, PhD, MLIS, Health Sciences Library System, Ellen G. Detlefsen, DLS, School of Information Sciences, and Marsha D. Marcus, PhD, Western Psychiatric Institute & Clinic University of Pittsburgh

Introduction The Internet is an increasingly common source of health information for consumers Women are more likely than men to be searching for health information (Pew Foundation, 2003) This study explored, in a sample of women age yrs, use of the Internet for the purpose of finding health information

Participants 182 women participating in a clinical trial of methods for prevention of weight gain Women were “at risk” for weight gain Randomly assigned to an experimental group and assessed on annual basis Completed a Heath Information Questionnaire as part of 1-year follow-up assessment

Baseline Demographic and Health Characteristics Age (years)35.5 Education level (%): High school diploma or less8.0 Some college27.3 College degree37.8 Graduate degree26.9 Employed full or part-time (%)90

Baseline Characteristics, cont’d Ethnicity (%): Caucasian87 African-American9.7 Asian, Native American or Hispanic3.3 Body mass index (%): Normal weight (bmi = )81 Overweight (bmi = 27-30)19

Computer Access at Home?

Internet Access?

Site of Internet Access?

Internet Used In Past Year To:

Sources of Health Information Used in Past Year:

Modal Rating of Information Source Usefulness 1 = not at all; 5 = very

All numbers are percentages Perceived Quality of Internet Health Information Not at all Somewhat Very Easy to find? How helpful? A problem to understand? Trustworthy?

All numbers are percentages How Trustworthy Are Sites Sponsored By: Not at all Somewhat Very Hospital or med center Rec. by physician University Non-profit Public library Drug company

Summary Internet is a popular and useful method for finding health information Demographic and health factors had limited impact on Internet access or use Observed differences suggest a “digital divide” –Marital status and education may reflect income differences Internet health information is viewed as easy to find and understand, but there are doubts about trustworthiness Judgments of trustworthiness are based, in part, on a site’s sponsor

Limitations and Strengths A select and homogeneous sample Self-report data Sample reflects largest group of consumers seeking health information “Piggyback model” for survey research

Future Directions Opportunity to measure changes in info-seeking behaviors over time (2- and 3-year FU) Continue to test the utility of the piggyback model: –Will be exploring information seeking among lesbian and heterosexual women enrolled in a study of cardiovascular risk factors