Understanding the consistent use of internet health information

The purpose of this paper is to analyse whether internet experience, process quality, outcome quality, customer satisfaction, and post‐use expectations affect the consistent use of health information online by Chinese internet users and how these factors are related to one another.

Data were collected from 219 Chinese university students who are currently using, or have used, the health information services available on the internet. Tertiary students were selected because they are active internet users who frequently use the internet to search for information.

Internet experience affects process quality, but it has no direct relation to outcome quality or customer satisfaction. Process quality determines customer satisfaction toward health information available on the internet and influences the outcome quality; however, the outcome quality is not related to customer satisfaction. The decision to reuse health information found on the internet is influenced by both customer satisfaction and post‐use expectations. The customers' post‐use expectations are primarily influenced by customer satisfaction.

For a successful internet business, internet marketers should recognise that service quality includes both process quality and outcome quality and plan new campaigns that take this factor into consideration. Tracking post‐use expectations can help predict, with reasonable accuracy, the relationship between customer satisfaction and retention of health information found on the internet.

This study provides a better understanding about the users of health information found on the internet in China by taking into account the above‐mentioned factors: internet experience, post‐use expectation, process quality, and outcome quality.