Welcome to the InfoSci Platform
Reference Hub9
Internet as a Source of Health Information and its Perceived Influence on Personal Empowerment

Internet as a Source of Health Information and its Perceived Influence on Personal Empowerment

Guy Paré, Jean-Nicolas Malek, Claude Sicotte, Marc Lemire
Copyright: © 2009 |Volume: 4 |Issue: 4 |Pages: 18
ISSN: 1555-3396|EISSN: 1555-340X|ISSN: 1555-3396|EISBN13: 9781616920623|EISSN: 1555-340X|DOI: 10.4018/jhisi.2009071001
Cite Article Cite Article

MLA

Paré, Guy, et al. "Internet as a Source of Health Information and its Perceived Influence on Personal Empowerment." IJHISI vol.4, no.4 2009: pp.1-18. http://doi.org/10.4018/jhisi.2009071001

APA

Paré, G., Malek, J., Sicotte, C., & Lemire, M. (2009). Internet as a Source of Health Information and its Perceived Influence on Personal Empowerment. International Journal of Healthcare Information Systems and Informatics (IJHISI), 4(4), 1-18. http://doi.org/10.4018/jhisi.2009071001

Chicago

Paré, Guy, et al. "Internet as a Source of Health Information and its Perceived Influence on Personal Empowerment," International Journal of Healthcare Information Systems and Informatics (IJHISI) 4, no.4: 1-18. http://doi.org/10.4018/jhisi.2009071001

Export Reference

Mendeley
Favorite Full-Issue Download

Abstract

The primary aim of this study is twofold. First, the authors seek to identify the factors that influence members of the general public to conduct Internet searches for health information. Their second intent is to explore the influence such Internet use has on three types of personal empowerment. In the summer of 2007 the authors conducted a household sample survey of a population of Canadian adults. A total of 261 self-administered questionnaires were returned to the researchers. Our findings indicate that use of the Internet as a source of health information is directly related to three main factors: sex, age and the individual’s perceived ability to understand, interpret and use the medical information available online. Further, their results lend support to the notion that using the Internet to search for information about health issues represents a more consumer based and participative approach to health care. This study is one of the first to relate Internet use to various forms of personal empowerment. This area appears to have great potential as a means by which consumers can become more empowered in managing personal health issues.

Request Access

You do not own this content. Please login to recommend this title to your institution's librarian or purchase it from the IGI Global bookstore.