Department of Health & Kinesiology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States.
Public Policy Research Institute & Department of Political Science, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States.
J Med Internet Res. 2021 Jul 14;23(7):e26180. doi: 10.2196/26180.
Previous research has identified disparities in seeking and using web-based health information to inform health-related behaviors. Relatively few studies however have examined the correlations between web-based health information seeking and use based on race, gender, age, and the presence of chronic health conditions.
In this study, we identify factors associated with seeking and using web-based health information among a uniquely vulnerable and intersectional population-middle-aged and older (40 years and older) African American and Hispanic men living with one or more chronic conditions.
Survey responses were collected from a purposive sample of African American and Hispanic men using Qualtrics web-based survey management software. To qualify for inclusion in the study, respondents had to identify as African American or Hispanic men, report having at least one chronic condition, and be aged 40 years and older. A series of binary logistic regression models was created using backward elimination. Statistical significance was determined at P<.05 for all analyses.
Web-based health information seeking among African American and Hispanic men is a function of education, the presence of multiple chronic conditions, frustration with health care providers, internet use, and the perceived reliability of web-based health information. The use of web-based health information to inform interactions with health care providers was more common among African American and Hispanic men, who rated their health as relatively good, perceived barriers to care, used technology regularly, and took more daily medications.
Understanding the factors that influence African American and Hispanic men seeking web-based health information may help improve the care and treatment of chronic conditions. African American and Hispanic men seek web-based health information as a substitute for routine care and to inform their discussions with health care providers.
先前的研究已经确定了在寻求和使用基于网络的健康信息以告知与健康相关的行为方面存在差异。然而，相对较少的研究根据种族、性别、年龄和是否存在慢性健康状况来检查基于网络的健康信息寻求和使用之间的相关性。
在这项研究中，我们确定了一个独特的脆弱和交叉人群——中年和老年（40 岁及以上）的非裔美国人和西班牙裔男性中，与寻求和使用基于网络的健康信息相关的因素，这些人患有一种或多种慢性疾病。
使用 Qualtrics 基于网络的调查管理软件，从有针对性的非裔美国人和西班牙裔男性样本中收集调查回复。要符合研究条件，受访者必须自认为是非裔美国男性或西班牙裔男性，报告至少有一种慢性疾病，年龄在 40 岁及以上。使用向后消除法创建了一系列二项逻辑回归模型。所有分析的统计显著性均定为 P<.05。
非裔美国人和西班牙裔男性基于网络的健康信息寻求是教育程度、多种慢性疾病的存在、对医疗保健提供者的不满、互联网使用以及对基于网络的健康信息的可靠性的感知的函数。非裔美国人和西班牙裔男性更常使用基于网络的健康信息来告知与医疗保健提供者的互动，他们对自己的健康状况评价相对较好，认为存在护理障碍，定期使用技术，并且每天服用更多的药物。
了解影响非裔美国人和西班牙裔男性寻求基于网络的健康信息的因素可能有助于改善对慢性疾病的护理和治疗。非裔美国人和西班牙裔男性寻求基于网络的健康信息是对常规护理的替代，也是为了告知他们与医疗保健提供者的讨论。
