Division of Health Informatics and Implementation Science, Quantitative Health Sciences and Medicine, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA 01655-0002, USA.
Int J Med Inform. 2013 Mar;82(3):193-200. doi: 10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2012.09.008. Epub 2012 Nov 11.
Previous studies examining characteristics of Internet health information seekers do not distinguish between those who only seek for themselves, and surrogate seekers who look for health information for family or friends. Identifying the unique characteristics of surrogate seekers would help in developing Internet interventions that better support these information seekers.
To assess differences between self seekers versus those that act also as surrogate seekers.
We analyzed data from the cross-sectional Pew Internet and American Life Project November/December 2008 health survey. Our dependent variable was self-report of type of health information seeking (surrogate versus self seeking). Independent variables included demographics, health status, and caregiving. After bivariate comparisons, we then developed multivariable models using logistic regression to assess characteristics associated with surrogate seeking.
Out of 1250 respondents who reported seeking health information online, 56% (N=705) reported being surrogate seekers. In multivariable models, compared with those who sought information for themselves only, surrogate seekers were more likely both married and a parent (OR=1.57, CI=1.08, 2.28), having good (OR=2.05, CI=1.34, 3.12) or excellent (OR=2.72, CI=1.70, 4.33) health status, being caregiver of an adult relative (OR=1.76, CI=1.34, 2.30), having someone close with a serious medical condition (OR=1.62, CI=1.21, 2.17) and having someone close to them facing a chronic illness (OR=1.55, CI=1.17, 2.04).
Our findings provide evidence that information needs of surrogate seekers are not being met, specifically of caregivers. Additional research is needed to develop new functions that support surrogate seekers.
之前研究互联网健康信息寻求者特征的研究并没有区分只为自己寻求信息的人和为家人或朋友寻找健康信息的代理寻求者。识别代理寻求者的独特特征将有助于开发更好地支持这些信息寻求者的互联网干预措施。
评估自我寻求者与代理寻求者之间的差异。
我们分析了 2008 年 11 月/12 月皮尤互联网与美国生活项目的横断面调查数据。我们的因变量是自我报告的健康信息寻求类型（代理寻求与自我寻求）。自变量包括人口统计学、健康状况和照护。在进行双变量比较后，我们使用逻辑回归建立多变量模型，以评估与代理寻求相关的特征。
在报告在线寻求健康信息的 1250 名受访者中，有 56%（N=705）报告自己是代理寻求者。在多变量模型中，与仅为自己寻求信息的人相比，代理寻求者更有可能已婚且是父母（OR=1.57，CI=1.08，2.28），健康状况良好（OR=2.05，CI=1.34，3.12）或极好（OR=2.72，CI=1.70，4.33），是成年亲属的照护者（OR=1.76，CI=1.34，2.30），身边有患有严重疾病的人（OR=1.62，CI=1.21，2.17），身边有慢性病患者（OR=1.55，CI=1.17，2.04）。
我们的研究结果表明，代理寻求者的信息需求没有得到满足，特别是照护者的需求。需要进一步研究以开发支持代理寻求者的新功能。
