Consumer Health Information Behavior in Public Libraries: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

This article explores public library users’ health information behavior and their perception of their own ability to find, evaluate, and use health information available in public libraries. The study employed semistructured intensive interviews as a follow-up to a quantitative study that measured health literacy ability by employing the Short Test of Functional Health Literacy Ability (S-TOFHLA). Twenty interviewees were selected from survey respondents based on gender, ethnicity, educational level, and age. The study examined their health information needs, self-perception of their own health information behavior, and the impact of the health information. Above all, the findings highlighted that most interviewees encountered critical barriers to using health information services available in public libraries, even though they had proficient health literacy based on S-TOFHLA.