Shahani Riffat, Asmi Fahad, Ma Jin, Zawar Asma, Rufai Olayemi Hafeez, Muhideen Sayibu, Amosun Tunde Simeon, Jianxun Chu
University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China.
Hefei First People's Hospital, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, Anhui, China.
Digit Health. 2023 Sep 20;9:20552076231185430. doi: 10.1177/20552076231185430. eCollection 2023 Jan-Dec.
Alarmingly, the individuals' reach and coverage to get vaccinated in developing regions during the pandemic is a massive challenge for concerned authorities. This study aimed to demonstrate how cyberchondria play a significant role in a classical health belief model. Cyberchondria may influence cognitive factors (e.g. self-efficacy), which may contribute to an increase in attitude-behavior gap. Especially in the context of a health-centric scenario, it may discourage individuals to take protective measures.
By using the cross-sectional research design, the authors conducted a quantitative survey in Pakistan and collected 563 responses from 303 male respondents (rural = 91; urban = 212) with (Urban M:35.5, standard deviation (SD):13.4) and rural M:37.5, SD:8.4).
The findings indicate that decision self-efficacy among males is stronger than that in females. It dominates other determinants, which can dampen the individuals' intentions to get vaccinated. For instance, the effect of conspiracies and perceived seriousness was noted nonsignificant and weak. In females, perceived seriousness was stronger determinant than in males. In addition, the negative effect of decision self-efficacy was noted in the case of females, and conspiracy and cyberchondria had a negative role.
This study highlights valuable implications for future research in infodemic, health communication and health literacy, and practical implications for regulatory bodies and public administration.
令人担忧的是，在疫情期间，发展中地区民众接种疫苗的可及性和覆盖率对相关当局来说是一项巨大挑战。本研究旨在证明网络疑病症在经典健康信念模型中如何发挥重要作用。网络疑病症可能会影响认知因素（如自我效能感），这可能会导致态度与行为差距增大。尤其是在以健康为中心的情境下，它可能会阻碍个人采取保护措施。
作者采用横断面研究设计，在巴基斯坦进行了一项定量调查，从303名男性受访者（农村 = 91人；城市 = 212人）中收集了563份回复（城市男性平均年龄M：35.5，标准差（SD）：13.4；农村男性平均年龄M：37.5，SD：8.4）。
研究结果表明，男性的决策自我效能感强于女性。它主导着其他决定因素，这些因素会削弱个人接种疫苗的意愿。例如，阴谋论和感知严重性的影响不显著且较弱。在女性中，感知严重性是比男性更强的决定因素。此外，在女性中发现决策自我效能感有负面影响，阴谋论和网络疑病症也有负面作用。
本研究突出了对信息疫情、健康传播和健康素养未来研究的宝贵启示，以及对监管机构和公共行政的实际启示。
