Information Seeking Intentions Research Articles

Empowering older adults: bridging the digital divide in online health information seeking

The proliferation of digital technology and the widespread adoption of smartphones provide older adults with valuable opportunities to seek health information. However, older adults do not reap the health benefits equally from using these digital technologies. This study draws on social cognitive theory to explore how to promote older adults to seek health information online to alleviate digital inequality. This study surveyed 277 older adults and analyzed the data using structural equation modeling. The findings confirm that self-efficacy and health-related outcome expectations are primary predictors of online health information seeking among older adults. Furthermore, this study identifies the sources of self-efficacy and health-related outcome expectations among older adults. Specifically, past experience and emotional state are significant sources of self-efficacy, while past experience, vicarious experience, verbal persuasion, and emotional state are crucial for enhancing health-related outcome expectations. Moreover, this study reveals health status negatively moderates the relationship between health-related outcome expectations and health information-seeking intention. These findings have important implications for research and practicality.

Factors Associated with Information Needs and Information-Seeking Intention Among People with Cancer Experience in Hong Kong.

Information is crucial for person-centered cancer care. This study investigated sociodemographic, psychological, and communicative factors associated with perceived information needs and the intention to continue seeking information among individuals with cancer experience in Hong Kong. Data were drawn from the INSIGHTS-Hong Kong (International Studies to Investigate Global Health Information Trends) survey, which included 510 respondents with personal cancer experience or as family members and close friends of those diagnosed with cancer. The findings revealed that 62% of participants perceived knowledge deficits and needed more cancer information, yet only 43% intended to seek additional information. Greater cancer worry, extensive effort in previous information searches, and concerns about information quality were significantly associated with heightened information needs. These results highlight key areas for prioritization in educational and supportive care initiatives to address unmet support needs. Additionally, the intention to seek further information was associated with perceived information needs, cancer severity, subjective norms, and concerns about information usefulness. These findings suggest strategies to enhance supportive care services by addressing unmet information needs through expanding access to credible and clear information, enhancing credibility assessment skills, emphasizing cancer risks, and leveraging support networks for individuals affected by cancer. This study lays the groundwork for future research on cancer information engagement in Hong Kong and other settings.

Intersectionality in Health Communication: How Health Communication Influences the Association Between Intersectional Discrimination and Health Information Seeking

With an intersectional orientation, we examine associations between discrimination, health communication, and information-seeking intention about HIV prevention in the context of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) among cisgender women through an online survey (N = 341). We elaborate on the idea that intersectional discrimination is a social determinant of health by considering the context with differing power relations—day-to-day life and the healthcare field—based on Bourdieu’s field theory, and explore moderating roles of health communication in this relationship according to the structural influence model of communication (SIM). The relationships between intersectional discrimination and intention show different patterns by the context in which intersectional experiences are considered, and the relationships are moderated differently by the mode of health communication. We discuss how to conduct intersectionality-informed health communication research without sacrificing intersectionality’s foundational foci.

Impact of reliable news information on consumers' perceptions and information seeking intentions from a food safety risk

PurposeThis study aimed to investigate whether information from reliable news sources such as medical experts and government officials, along with governmental and individual risk responses, influences consumers’ perceptions of news and intention to seek more information. Additionally, it aimed to explore the relationships between these perceptions and consumers’ intentions to seek information in a food safety risk event.Design/methodology/approachA survey design methodology was employed. A quasi-experimental approach divided 470 Taiwanese participants into three groups, each exposed to varying online news content about food safety news, designed according to the Internalization-Distribution-Explanation-Action (IDEA) model. This involved different combinations of reliable sources and risk response advice to examine the impact on news comprehension and behaviour intentions.FindingsThe results indicated that consumers perceived the news as highly credible when they read it with reliable news sources or risk response advice. Governmental and individual risk response advice significantly impacted consumers’ understanding of news. In addition, perceptions of news credibility and understanding of news can increase individuals’ information-seeking intentions to protect themselves from food safety risks.Originality/valueThis study introduced novel insights into the application of the source credibility theory (SCT) model within Taiwanese food safety incidents, identifying key factors that motivate consumer information-seeking behaviour. It marks an initial attempt to incorporate the IDEA model-based risk communication content into research design, aligning with existing literature while highlighting the critical role of reliable sources in enhancing news credibility and consumer response.

How Do Behavioral Framing, Linguistic Certainty, and Target Specification Impact Responses to Vaping Prevention Messages?

While research on youth vaping prevention has begun to grow, little work has examined language choice in vaping prevention messages. This study examined adolescents’ responses to vaping prevention statements that varied on three features: behavioral framing, linguistic certainty, and target specification. We conducted a 2 (behavioral framing) by 2 (linguistic certainty) by 2 (target specification) by 3 (risk type) plus control condition between-subjects experiment using a national probability sample. Adolescents (N = 1,603) were randomly assigned to one of 25 conditions in which they viewed a vaping prevention statement (or a control statement about vape litter) followed by measures of perceived message effectiveness (PME), perceived severity and susceptibility of vaping risks, message trustworthiness, message relevance, and intentions to seek more information about vaping risks. Results showed main effects of behavioral framing, such that a declarative frame (“Vaping can … ”) led to higher PME, higher perceived severity, and greater information seeking intentions than a contingent frame (“If you vape, it can…”), while an interaction revealed that most declarative frame effects were driven by adolescents who were susceptible to vaping. There were also main effects of linguistic certainty, such that the word “can” (“Vaping can … ”) led to higher PME, higher perceived susceptibility and severity, and greater information seeking intentions than the word “could” (“Vaping could … ”). No main effect of target specification (“you” vs. “teens”) was observed. Overall, findings suggest that vaping prevention messages that communicate greater certainty have greater behavior change potential.

Understanding preventative behavior during prolonged crises: The role of color-coded maps and pandemic fatigue in COVID-19 risk management

The COVID-19 pandemic introduced the use of color-coded COVID-19 guidance maps to communicate varying levels of transmission based on local public health data and infrastructure capacity. This study explores the application of an extended Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) to understand how color-coded COVID-19 guidance, pandemic fatigue, and risk perception influence intentions to seek COVID-19 risk information and engage in preventative behaviors. Through two separate studies comprising nationally representative samples in the U.S. (N = 169 and N = 148), conducted at different points during the pandemic, we examine the effect of these factors on intentions to seek COVID-19 risk information and intentions to engage in preventative behaviors. Study 1, conducted in November 2020, focused on these behavioral intentions before vaccine availability, while Study 2, conducted in March 2022, examined these behavioral intentions as the pandemic evolved and vaccines were widely accessible. Path analysis using OLS regression was used to evaluate the models proposed in each study. Our findings highlight that while color-coded risk maps significantly influenced preventive behavior intentions, their impact on information-seeking intentions was less consistent. Results surrounding the influence of pandemic fatigue are mixed, with pandemic fatigue leading to increased risk information seeking in Study 1 and greater preventative behavioral intentions in Study 2. This study offers implications and recommendations for public health officials responsible for communicating complex, prolonged, and location-specific health information.

Effects of Exposure to Conflicting Health Information on Topic-Specific Information Sharing and Seeking Intentions

ABSTRACT Despite considerable evidence that exposure to conflicting health information can have undesirable effects on outcomes including public understanding about and trust in health recommendations, comparatively little is known about whether such exposure influences intentions to engage in two communication behaviors central to public health promotion: information sharing and information seeking. The purpose of the current study is to test whether exposure to conflicting information influences intentions to share and seek information about six health topics. We analyzed data from two waves of a longitudinal survey experiment with a nationally representative sample of U.S. adults (N = 3,920). Participants were randomly assigned to either a conflict or no-conflict message condition, in which they read news stories and social media posts about three (of six) randomly selected health topics at Time 1 and the remaining three at Time 2. The dependent variables, which were measured at Time 2, asked participants whether they intended to share or seek information about the three topics they had just viewed. Linear mixed effects models showed that exposure to conflict reduced intentions to share and seek information, regardless of health topic. These findings suggest that exposure to conflicting health information discourages two important types of health information engagement, thus adding to the growing evidence base documenting the adverse consequences of conflicting information for public health.

The Effects of Animations and Multimedia Messages on Public Engagement in Precision Medicine: Assessment of Moderation and Mediation

Public participation in precision medicine (PM) research is essential to achieving effective health care but has been impeded by a lack of awareness and basic knowledge. There is a critical need for educational materials that can clearly explain PM to foster involvement. This randomized controlled trial with a posttest-only control group design aims to assess the effects of educational messages delivered through animations relative to live-action videos and leaflets on intentions of involvement in PM research. Knowledge as the moderator and four mediators (engagement, vividness, trustworthiness, and cognitive value) of the intended effects were also evaluated. A total of 326 U.S. adults were sampled from Amazon Mechanical Turk. Among participants with less knowledge about PM, animations produced stronger information-seeking intentions and willingness to participate than leaflets. The effects of three message modalities were not significantly different among average and highly knowledgeable participants. Engagement and vividness mediated the effects of animations relative to two other message modalities. Trustworthiness and cognitive value mediated the effects of animations relative to live-action videos. Overall, animations can be an effective communication strategy to motivate involvement in PM but its effectiveness could decline as knowledge increases. The explanations and implications of the findings were discussed.

Seeking information about waste-to-energy incineration projects: The role of objective knowledge and benefit perceptions in an extended PRISM.

Although waste-to-energy (WtE) incineration projects have boosted the economic effectiveness of the waste management system, locals frequently view them with suspicion, opposition, or even outright rejection because of potential environmental and health risks. In this study, by incorporating two additional variables, namely, objective knowledge and benefit perceptions, the planned risk information seeking model (PRISM) was extended in the context of the WtE incineration project. A total of 1726 respondents were interviewed in person. Results from the structural equation modeling indicated that the extended PRISM achieved excellent fits, suggesting the generalizability of the model in these contexts. Objective knowledge and subjective knowledge have a positive and direct impact on perceived knowledge insufficiency. The impact of benefit and risk perceptions on worry is the opposite, with risk perceptions having a greater direct effect on worry. However, compared with risk perceptions, the direct effect that benefit perceptions have on perceived knowledge insufficiency is stronger. Additionally, perceived knowledge insufficiency partially or completely mediates the relationships between all antecedents, except perceived seeking control, and information-seeking intention. This study suggests that risk managers carefully consider how to establish powerful communication tactics to shape these antecedents when introducing a "not in my backyard" project to the local community.

Misinformation, Risk Perceptions, and Intention to Seek Information About Masks: The Moderating Roles of Gender and Reflective Judgment

ABSTRACT The current study has three main purposes: to examine 1) the impact of theory-driven corrective messages using individual vs. collective frames on information-seeking intention 2) the mediating role of risk perceptions and 3) the moderating role of reflection and gender. Our findings from a randomized experimental study and Hayes’ moderated, moderated mediation model show collective frames were associated with high-risk perceptions among women, which in turn led to higher information seeking intention. The second moderator reveals that people who scored higher on reflection were more willing to seek information. Our findings have critical implications for misinformation research by demonstrating the importance of theoretically driven messages in understanding misperceptions as well as people’s information seeking behavior.

Communicating uncertainties regarding COVID-19 vaccination: Moderating roles of trust in science, government, and society.

This study examined how uncertainty affects information seeking and avoidance behaviors via information insufficiency in the COVID-19 vaccination context. It also investigated how trust in science, government, and society moderate the effects of information insufficiency. An online experiment with 131 Korean adults showed that uncertainty indirectly affects information seeking intentions via information insufficiency, which is moderated by science trust and governmental trust. It also showed that uncertainty indirectly affects information avoidance intentions via information insufficiency, which is moderated by social trust.

Information seeking about vaccines: institutional trust, perceived benefits, and individual vs. collective frames

ABSTRACT Despite robust scientific and medical consensus on vaccine effectiveness, many people remain hesitant to get vaccinated against life-threatening diseases. Considering the importance of information seeking in a misinformation-filled landscape to make critical decisions such as vaccination behavior, we set out to understand information seeking intention about vaccines. Using COVID-19 vaccines as the context, we conducted an experiment to examine the impact of individual vs. collective messages on information seeking intention. Our findings show significant main effects of the messages, and we discover a complex picture of the moderating roles of institutional trust and perceived benefits with messages on information seeking intention. Specifically, our findings show that among people with lower perceived benefits of vaccination, and with a higher trust in authoritative organizations, exposure to individually framed messaging results in greater information-seeking intention. But when people have low perceived benefits and also low trust in authoritative organizations, collectively framed messages show a persuasive advantage.

Extending the Knowledge Gap Hypothesis to Narrative Persuasion: Parents' Information-Seeking Intention and Learning About Adolescent Children's Covid-19 Vaccination.

The gap in knowledge and information-seeking between high and low socioeconomic status (SES) has been well documented. This study extends this knowledge gap hypothesis to narrative persuasion in the context of parents' knowledge and information-seeking intention concerning adolescents' COVID-19 vaccination. It specifically tests if the gap is moderated by a message type (narrative vs. non-narrative). An online quasi-experiment, with a 2 (participants' education level: high vs. low) × 3 (message type: narrative vs. non-narrative vs. no-message) between-subject design, showed a main effect of education level (i.e., parents with a higher [vs. lower] education level rated a higher intention to seek information and provided more correct answers on questions about adolescents' COVID-19 vaccination) and an interaction between the two factors. The interaction showed that the gap between high- and low-education groups in information-seeking intention disappeared among those who read the narrative or non-narrative, and the gap in knowledge disappeared among those who read the narrative. Study findings suggest the utility of narratives in narrowing the gap in knowledge and information-seeking to improve parents' decisions on child vaccination.

Cardiovascular Health Information-seeking Intention among Malaysian Youths: A Conceptual Paper

Youths receive information from various sources inadvertently every day. A clear understanding of cardiovascular health information sources is important for the government, the private sector, and non-government organisations to devise better strategies to enable information to reach youths effectively. Besides, cardiovascular health information sources also affect youths’ subjective norms, health literacy, attitude towards cardiovascular disease prevention, and cardiovascular health information-seeking intention—these variables are crucial for youths to promote self-management skills. Thus, this conceptual paper aims to examine cardiovascular health information sources, as well as the relationship between information sources and Malaysian youths’ subjective norms, health literacy level, attitude towards cardiovascular disease prevention, and cardiovascular health information-seeking intention. This paper is significant as it can be used as a reference for future researchers, government policymakers, the private sector, and non-government organisations to plan cardiovascular disease campaigns or related activities among youths to optimise the results in reducing cases of cardiovascular disease in Malaysia.

The Roles of Social Media Use and Medical Mistrust in Black Americans’ COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy: The RISP Model Perspective

ABSTRACT The COVID-19 pandemic has brought unprecedented challenges to healthcare and public health messaging in the United States. One area of focus has been vaccination uptake among Black Americans, who have experienced COVID-19 deaths disproportionate to their share of the United States population, raising questions about the processes involved in vaccination perceptions and behaviors. Guided by the Risk Information Seeking and Processing model, this study explored the roles of medical mistrust and social media as a source of risk information in Black Americans’ vaccine hesitancy. Survey results from a YouGov panel sample of Black Americans (n = 1,136; 53.5% female) showed that social media use and medical mistrust were positively associated with belief in misinformation related to the COVID-19 vaccine, which, in turn, was positively related to vaccine hesitancy through perceived information insufficiency and information seeking intentions. Furthermore, we found that belief in misinformation and subjective norms toward anti-vaccination also serially mediated the association between social media use and medical mistrust with vaccine hesitancy. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Effects of Jargon and Source Accent on Receptivity to Science Communication

We examined whether source accent moderates jargon's effects on listeners’ processing fluency and receptivity to science communication. Americans heard a speaker describing science using either jargon or non-jargon and speaking with either a native (standard American) or foreign (Hispanic) accent. Compared to non-jargon, jargon disrupted listeners’ fluency for both speakers, but especially the foreign-accented speaker; jargon also reduced information-seeking intentions and perceived source and message credibility, but only for the foreign-accented speaker. Fluency mediated the effects of jargon on outcomes.

Rumor behaviors as collective problem-solving: The moderating roles of regulatory focus

Approaching rumors as a form of collective problem-solving, this study investigated how regulatory focus (i.e., prevention vs. promotion) interacts with rumor valence to affect rumor behaviors via community motives using an experiment with 534 Korean citizens. The analysis showed that positive rumors (vs. negative) elicit stronger information seeking intentions among low promotion-focus individuals. Also, when exposed to negative rumors (vs. positive), both high prevention- and promotion-focus individuals showed stronger community motives, increasing both their rumor transmitting and information seeking intentions.

Understanding support for aquaculture policy: The role of information exposure, information seeking, and source credibility

Aquaculture information is omnipresent—from news media coverage, to government websites, to social media and marketing campaigns. These mediated accounts may contribute to amplifying or attenuating perceived risks or benefits, a key concern for ensuring the social acceptability of aquaculture and securing social license to operate for new development. Using survey data collected from Maine (U.S.) residents, we apply concepts from the risk information seeking and processing model (RISP) to understand the social psychological determinants of information seeking intentions about marine aquaculture. Extending the model, we also explore how such intentions influence support for aquaculture policy more broadly. Results reproduced many previously established RISP relationships, such as that believing aquaculture to be highly salient—along with judging a gap between what one knows and wants to know about this issue (i.e., information insufficiency) — motivate information seeking. Yet, contrary to expectation, beliefs about what others expect one to know about aquaculture (i.e., informational subjective norms) was not associated with information seeking. Further, we found a negative relationship between perceived ability to find relevant information (i.e., information gathering capacity) and current knowledge about aquaculture, and no significant relationship between capacity and information seeking. These unexpected findings lead to further questions about the generalizability of RISP outside of explicitly “risky” contexts and may suggest issues particular to aquaculture development in Maine. Theoretical and practical implications are presented.

PCR157 Sociopsychological Factors Related to Information Seeking during the COVID-19 Pandemic

To limit the risk of contracting the coronavirus, it is crucial for individuals to attain accurate COVID-19 related information. Once they are equipped with such information, they can engage in risk preventive behaviors. This study aimed to examine the sociopsychological factors predisposing individuals’ information-seeking intentions. Based on the risk information seeking and processing (RISP) model, we hypothesized that individuals perceiving the risk of COVID-19 were likely to seek risk-related information through increased affective response (i.e., anxiety and fear) and information insufficiency. We considered perceived information gathering capacity as a moderator in the prediction of information-seeking intention. Using an online survey platform, study participants were recruited from US adults. Multivariate linear regressions were conducted in a hierarchical fashion while controlling for numerous covariates. A total of 510 responses were included in our analyses. Respondents’ mean age was 46.6±17.8 years; about half (53.3%) were females. Results showed that respondents’ perceived risk provoked affective responses (regression coefficient (b) = 0.8417, 95% CI [0.7408, 0.9426]), which then increased self-perceived information insufficiency (b = 0.1857, 95% CI [0.0859, 0.2855]). This finding indicated that after perceiving the risk of coronavirus, individuals experienced worry and fear associated with the risk. Such affective responses made them realize that their current COVID-19 related knowledge was insufficient. Also, respondents who acknowledged information insufficiency were motivated to seek information about the coronavirus (b = 0.1099, 95% CI [0.0198, 0.1999]). The relation between information insufficiency and information-seeking intentions was moderated by perceived information gathering capacity (b = 0.0070, 95% CI [0.0001, 0.0151]), indicating that individuals with a higher capacity of gathering information were more likely to intend information seeking. Study findings suggest the importance of interventions to promote information seeking for individuals with a low information gathering capacity. Policy makers and clinicians assist the public in obtaining accurate information from reliable sources.

Information seeking during the COVID-19 pandemic: Application of the risk information seeking and processing model.

To limit the risk of contracting the coronavirus, it is crucial for individuals to attain accurate COVID-19 related information. Once equipped with such information, they can engage in risk preventive behaviors. Applying the risk information seeking and processing (RISP) model, this study examined the sociopsychological factors predisposing individuals' information-seeking intentions. This study employed a cross-sectional survey design. Using an online survey platform, study participants were recruited from US adults. A total of 510 valid responses were included in the analyses. Multivariate regression analyses were conducted in a hierarchical fashion while controlling for numerous covariates to determine the relationships between the sociopsychological variables and information-seeking intentions. Sociodemographic disparities were found in perceptions of COVID-19 risk. Perceived risk of coronavirus infection was higher among females, individuals with a history of COVID-19 symptoms, and those in a lower health status. Individuals' perceived risk provoked affective responses (e.g., worry and fear), which then increased self-perceived information insufficiency. This finding indicated individuals experienced worry and fear after perceiving the risk of coronavirus. Such affective responses made them realize that their current COVID-19 related knowledge was insufficient. Subjective norms were also found to increase information insufficiency. In other words, individuals who desired to comply with others' expectations to acquire knowledge about the risk recognized that their current knowledge about coronavirus was insufficient. Finally, individuals who acknowledged information insufficiency were motivated to seek information about the coronavirus. The relation between information insufficiency and information-seeking intentions was moderated by perceived information gathering capacity, but not by relevant channel beliefs. The findings suggest that policy makers and clinicians assist the public in obtaining accurate information from reliable sources.