Abstract
BackgroundHealth communication inequalities were observed in Western population but less is known about them among the Chinese. We investigated health information seeking behaviours and its social determinants among Chinese adults in Hong Kong.MethodsProbability-based sample surveys over telephone were conducted in 2009, 2010/11 and 2012 to monitor family health and information use. Frequency of health information seeking from television, radio, newspapers/magazines and Internet were recorded and dichotomised as ≥1 time/month and <1 time/month (reference). Logistic regression was used to yield adjusted odds ratios (aOR) of health information seeking for different demographic characteristics, socioeconomic status (education, employment and income), chronic disease and behaviours (smoking, drinking and physical activity).ResultsAmong 4553 subjects in all surveys, most (85.1%) had sought health information monthly from newspapers/magazines (66.2%), television (61.4%), radio (35.6%) or Internet (33.2%). Overall, being male, lower education attainment, lower household income, ever-smoking and physical inactivity were associated with less frequent health information seeking (all P <0.05). Compared with younger people, older people were less likely to search health information from Internet but more like to obtain it from radio (both P for trend <0.001). Having chronic diseases was associated with frequent health information seeking from television (aOR = 1.25, 95% CI: 1.07–1.47) and Internet (aOR = 1.46, 95% CI: 1.24–1.73).ConclusionsThis study has provided the first evidence on health information inequalities from a non-Western population with advanced mass media and Internet penetration. Socioeconomic inequalities and behavioural clustering of health information seeking suggested more resources are needed for improving health communication in disadvantage groups.
Highlights
Social factors play important roles in explaining health disparities and one plausible mechanism is through inequalities in health communication, defined as the difference in accessing, seeking, processing and acting on information by different groups in a society [1,2]
Seeking health information requires both financial resources and cognitive skills developed through schooling which puts those from a lower socioeconomic status (SES) at a greater disadvantage
Verbal informed consents were obtained from the respondents and the procedure was approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB)
Summary
Social factors play important roles in explaining health disparities and one plausible mechanism is through inequalities in health communication, defined as the difference in accessing, seeking, processing and acting on information by different groups in a society [1,2]. Health information seeking behaviour (HISB) is partly explained by psychological factors (e.g. self-efficacy, trait, perception and belief), increasingly studies report that HISB is socially patterned mostly based on evidence from studies in the United. Inequalities in health information seeking is less known in Asian populations which, compared with the West, have different SES inequalities, telecommunication infrastructure and perceptions of health. We investigated health information seeking behaviours and its social determinants among Chinese adults in Hong Kong
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
