Website Content Quality Research Articles

Can website information be a constraint for people with physical disabilities? Assessing an index of national parks’ website content quality and efficiency

Can website information be a constraint for people with physical disabilities? Assessing an index of national parks’ website content quality and efficiency

O070 An assessment of information available online for the public regarding aortic dissection

Abstract Introduction Objective To assess the quality of information provided by open access websites regarding aortic dissections on the World Wide Web. Methods The first 50 results from Yahoo, Bing and Google were collected using the search term ‘aortic dissection’ and duplicates removed. Website quality was scored using the University of Michigan Consumer Health Website tool (maximum score 80). Website readability was assessed using the Flesch Reading Ease score (maximum score 100) and Simple Measure of Gobbledygook (SMOG) score (years of education needed). Subjective assessment was undertaken to assess the quality of website content. Results 39 of 75 websites were included for analysis after applying the exclusion criteria. 94.9% of websites did not specify the type of aortic dissection discussed. Most websites were weak, with an average Michigan score of 48.89 (SD ±8.09). Sources published by non-profit organizations were of the lowest quality (mean score = 44.69 SD ± 5.85). Most websites were rated as ‘fairly difficult’ to read, with an overall mean FRE score of 58.92 (SD ± 28.03). Websites aimed at medical trainees had lowest readability (mean = 38.87, SD ±15.36). Websites published by non-profit organisations required the least years of education to read, with mean SMOG score of 10.93 (SD ±3.12). Conclusion Current online websites providing education to the public and professionals regarding aortic dissections are difficult to read, with a poor consistency and reliability between publishing organizations. Efforts must be made to produce high-quality, standardised information, to facilitate patient awareness and decision-making autonomy.

O071 An assessment of information available online for the public regarding aortic aneurysms

Abstract Introduction Objective - To assess the quality of information provided by open access websites regarding aortic aneurysms (AA) on the World Wide Web. Methods The first 50 results from Yahoo, Bing and Google were collected using the search term ‘aortic aneurysm’ and duplicates removed. Website quality was scored using the University of Michigan Consumer Health Website tool (maximum score 80). Website readability was assessed using the Flesch Reading Ease (FRE)score (maximum score 100) and Simple Measure of Gobbledygook (SMOG) score (years of education needed). Subjective assessment was undertaken to assess the quality of website content. Results 59 of 81 websites were included for analysis after applying the exclusion criteria. 59.3% of websites were targeted at abdominal aortic aneurysms, and only 3.4% specific to thoracic aneurysms. The mean Michigan score for all sources was 48.6 (SD ±5.8), indicating sources were weak globally irrespective of publisher (public, private, independent or non-profit organization). Most sources were rated as requiring standard reading level, with a global average FRE of 62.72 (SD ±10.8). Mean SMOG scores showed that websites published by private organisations required the least educational level to read (mean = 10.5, SD ± 0.1). Conclusion Current online websites providing education to the public and professionals regarding aortic aneuryms are consistently low quality and lack comprehensiveness, with a paucity of information available for thoracic aortic aneurysms specifically. Efforts must be made to improve the quality of sources as well as expanding the scope of content to facilitate patient awareness and decision-making autonomy.

Weaknesses and strengths of online marketing websites

Purpose Websites are the most important element of company strategy in the digital space. Therefore, establishing strategic management of online business is essential to improve firm connectedness and competitiveness and to achieve global company reach. This paper aims to propose the analysis of technical and content quality of websites to identify the main weaknesses and strengths of online business. Design/methodology/approach An innovative measurement instrument called IWebQEI is designed to measure web quality level. This instrument is validated with data from 104 international companies. The results are used to verify whether there are quality differences between informative and e-commerce websites. Findings The main findings indicate that e-commerce websites achieve greater levels of technical and content quality than informative sites, and companies implementing e-commerce pay more attention to the content quality dimension. In contrast, companies using an informative website are more focused on the technical quality dimension. Based on these results, practical insights are offered to improve the strategic management of e-commerce. Originality/value Few studies have focused on analysing the technical and content quality of websites to identify the main weaknesses and strengths of online business. The results offer important theoretical and practical contributions for companies on how to manage their website to improve firm connectivity and competitiveness.

Quality and readability of online health information on menopausal hormone therapy in Canada: what are our patients reading?

To assess the quality and readability of 24 of the most accessed menopause hormone therapy (MHT) websites by Canadian women. The top 24 websites from Google, Bing, and Yahoo were identified using the search term "hormone replacement therapy." Five menopause specialists assessed website content quality using the DISCERN Instrument, Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) benchmarks, and Abbott's Scale. Two reviewers assessed website credibility using the Health on the Net Foundation Code of Conduct certification, and website readability using the Simple Measure of Gobbledygook, Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level, and Flesch-Kincaid Read Ease formulae. Scores for quality of information varied. The mean JAMA score was low at 2.3 ± 1.1 (out of 4). Only one website met all benchmarks. Fourteen websites (58%) had a good/excellent DISCERN score, while four (17%) had a poor/very poor score. For Abbott's Scale, both the mean authorship score at 2.2 ± 1.0 (out of 4) and mean content score at 45.9 ± 9.8 (out of 100) were low. Inter-rater reliability was high for all tools. Fifteen websites (63%) were Health on the Net Foundation Code of Conduct certified. The mean Flesch-Kincaid Read Ease was 42.7 ± 10.3, mean Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level was 12.3 ± 1.9, and mean Simple Measure of Gobbledygook grade level was 11.3 ± 1.5. Only one website presented content at a reading level recommended for the public. Websites meeting more JAMA benchmarks were significantly less readable (P < 0.05). Although good quality MHT information exists online, several resources are inaccurate or incomplete. Overall, these resources are not considered comprehensible by the public. There is a need to disseminate accurate, comprehensive, and understandable MHT information online.

Medical Advisability of Youth Pitching Recommendations on the Internet.

Background:As the incidence of youth pitching injuries and surgical procedures attributed to overuse has drastically increased, there are quality concerns about popular internet resources regarding arm care for youth pitchers.Purpose/Hypothesis:To assess the medical advisability of online arm care recommendations for youth pitchers. It was hypothesized that websites contain misleading arm-care information that is discordant with medical advice.Study Design:Cross-sectional study.Methods:We reviewed the first 100 websites populated after a Google search for youth pitching recommendations. Websites were categorized by type (athletic organization, commercial, or educational) and content quality (medically advisable, discordant, or neutral), the latter with respect to the Pitch Smart guidelines used by Major League Baseball. Chi-square tests of independence and z tests of independent proportions were used to compare column proportions among categories of website content quality for each type of website source. Given the small sample sizes in some instances, the Fisher-Freeman-Halton exact test was performed to assess the relationship between website source type and quality of information.ResultsOf the 99 qualifying websites, 76 were categorized as medically advisable, 16 as discordant, and 7 as neutral. In addition, 92% of educational websites and 94.7% of athletic organization websites featured exclusively advisable content, whereas only 54.8% of commercial websites were advisable. Of the 16 discordant websites, 15 were commercial sites. Educational websites were significantly more advisable and neutral in content when compared with discordant information, while commercial websites were significantly predictive of discordant content. Among the first 50 websites populated according to Google, 42 (84%) were advisable, 6 (12%) discordant, and 2 (4%) neutral. The remaining websites (n = 49) featured 34 (69.4%) that were advisable, 10 (20.4%) discordant, and 5 (10.2%) neutral.Conclusion:Study findings indicated that websites of an educational nature are predictive of medically advisable content, while commercial websites (eg, blogs) are associated with discordant information. The abundance and availability of inaccurate internet information should be appreciated by medical professionals and parents/coaches of youth baseball players.

Assessing the quality of online information on glaucoma procedures

ObjectiveTo investigate the quality of information related to glaucoma procedures found online using 2 different assessment tools. DesignCross-sectional survey of 100 web sites found via Google search engine. MethodsThe terms “peripheral iridotomy” and “trabeculectomy” along with synonymous keywords were inputted into Google's search engine. The first 50 functional websites for each term were assessed by 2 independent raters using the DISCERN instrument as well as a quality assessment tool by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). Statistical analysis included an evaluation of intra-rater reproducibility and interclass correlation between the 2 scales. Main outcome measures(i) Quality of web site content based on DISCERN and JAMA scores, (ii) quality of web site based on categorization of web site (iii), intra-rater reproducibility of each scale, and (iv) interclass correlation between the 2 rating scales. ResultsOnly 22% of the web sites for peripheral iridotomy and 34% of the web sites for trabeculectomy met all the criteria for JAMA's quality assessment. The mean DISCERN scores for peripheral iridotomy and trabeculectomy were 44 and 43.7, respectively, indicating poor quality. For the DISCERN scale, level of agreement between raters for each question ranged from κ = 0.550 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.700–1.026) to κ = 0.884 (95% CI 0.751–1.017). For the JAMA 4 scale, level of agreement for each question ranged from κ = 0.874 (95% CI 0.734–1.01) to κ = 1.00. ConclusionOur study indicates that information found online for two common ophthalmic procedures is of variable and poor quality. Thus, patients may be receiving misinformation online and better measures need to be implemented to avoid the dissemination of low-quality health information.

Reimagining Residency Selection: Part 1-A Practical Guide to Recruitment in the Post-COVID-19 Era.

Reimagining Residency Selection: Part 1-A Practical Guide to Recruitment in the Post-COVID-19 Era.

Exploring the Key Factors in the Use of an E-Learning System Among Students at King Faisal University, Saudi Arabia

&lt;p&gt;The primary purpose of this study is to review and analyse the literature related to e-learning, which is linked to previous studies. Specifically, studies that used the TAM model to examine the effect of eleven external factors, such as website content quality, website design quality, website technical quality, website access speed, usability, e-learning system functionality, e-learning system reliability, facilitating conditions, top management support, student awareness and academic staff awareness on the use of an e-learning system in King Faisal University, Saudi Arabia. The findings of this study offer valuable guidelines for practitioners, researchers and educators about the most important factors that enhance the use of e-learning systems in universities.&lt;/p&gt;

Evaluating the most popular diabetes websites in the USA: a content analysis.

Over 1.5 million Americans are diagnosed with diabetes every year, and the majority of them go online to learn about their condition. Unfortunately, the online diabetes landscape is crowded, and the quality of website content is unknown-guidance for patients and healthcare providers regarding online diabetes information is needed. To address this, nine of the top diabetes websites in the USA were identified through a comprehensive, multiple-query search and a content analysis was conducted. Two coders, with high inter-coder reliability, evaluated these websites on six factors: (i) Design; (ii) Credibility; (iii) Accessibility; (iv) Literacy; (v) Engagement; and (vi) Diabetes Content. The analysis revealed that the websites presented most of the assessed design features. Few of the sites scored well on the credibility assessment, while the majority of sites did not note an author, editor or reviewer. With regard to accessibility, less than half of the items we assessed were met. Furthermore, the websites possessed wide variability in literacy, with an average readability grade level of 8.8. Most of the websites fared well in engagement, demonstrating multiple avenues to interact with the organization. All of the websites provided basic information regarding diabetes, but many did not include information for caregivers, providers or insurance information. In conclusion, patients and their family members will continue to seek online information about diabetes, its effects and treatment options. Therefore, this multiple-metric evaluation provides essential information for these individuals, and healthcare providers, who can now give better informed website recommendations to their patients and families.

Infodemiology of Crohn's disease and Ulcerative colitis using GoogleTrends - an approach to investigate patient needs.

Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) highly affect quality of life. The course of disease and success of treatment are variable. These factors result in a high number of psychiatric comorbidities with patients requiring extensive medical consultation or additional psychotherapy. Unfortunately, time is often limited in daily clinical care, which leaves patients not feeling sufficiently informed about their disease. Patients often compensate by searching the internet, with possibly harmful information. We aim to identify information gaps to allow a more complete education of patients. We analyzed the internet search behavior using the key words [Morbus Crohn] (CD) and [Colitis ulcerosa] (UC) using Google Trends. In addition, we investigated which websites are the first hits on Google, as those are most likely visited by patients. Symptoms, nutrition and therapy are central topics for persons interested in IBD. The searches concerning symptoms or therapies do not match the actual incidence or prevalence of comorbidities as well as the more commonly used therapies or established nutritional recommendations. We found a distinct impact of well-known personalities on disease related searches. The first suggested websites on google showed great heterogeneity of responsible publishers, often with possible conflict of interests. In line with those observations, quality of website content is highly heterogeneous. This study showed a need of information concerning symptoms, nutrition and therapy that should be considered during patient education. Since time in physician patient dialogue is short it may be helpful to further evaluate websites independently in order to give recommendations of websites offering reliable information.

A structural equation method for improving customer satisfaction of e-commerce websites using the hybrid approach of QFD and WebQual

The present study has provided a framework in order to improve the satisfaction of users of e-commerce sites using quality function deployment (QFD) and WebQual instruments. A structural equation model (SEM) has been developed in order to determine the significance of each aspect of the WebQual model and its significance weight. This study has evaluated the satisfaction of users with the quality of website content, transaction quality and security, usability and service interaction quality, and provided the solutions to improve these factors in form of the QFD method. Results showed the transaction quality and security has the highest priority for improvement. Among all the customers' requirements, the indicators such as a wide range of exchanges, preserving privacy, ease of transaction, the right format, ease of search, the usefulness of transactions, and finally the clear and understandable interactions should be placed in a higher priority for improvement by management.

A structural equation method for improving customer satisfaction of e-commerce websites using the hybrid approach of QFD and WebQual

The present study has provided a framework in order to improve the satisfaction of users of e-commerce sites using quality function deployment (QFD) and WebQual instruments. A structural equation model (SEM) has been developed in order to determine the significance of each aspect of the WebQual model and its significance weight. This study has evaluated the satisfaction of users with the quality of website content, transaction quality and security, usability and service interaction quality, and provided the solutions to improve these factors in form of the QFD method. Results showed the transaction quality and security has the highest priority for improvement. Among all the customers' requirements, the indicators such as a wide range of exchanges, preserving privacy, ease of transaction, the right format, ease of search, the usefulness of transactions, and finally the clear and understandable interactions should be placed in a higher priority for improvement by management.

Factors Influencing the Adoption of E-government Services among Jordanian Citizens

This work aims to study effective factors that could play an important role in the decision of Jordanian citizens to adopt e-government services. The study employed the UTAUT model with introducing new constructs, namely; 'website quality', 'trust of internet', 'trust of government', to study the adoption of e-government services in Jordan context. The data was collected using online survey from a total of 320 Jordanian citizen who are from both public and private sectors. The research model was evaluated using the structural equation modelling (SEM) technique. Based on the results, 'website quality', 'trust of internet', 'trust of government', 'performance expectancy', 'effort expectancy' and 'facilitating conditions' factors were shown to have a positive effect on behavioural intention to use e-government services. However, the influence of 'social influence' was found to be insignificant on the participants behavioural intention to use. Additionally, the 'website quality' factor was found to have a positive effect on the 'performance expectancy' of e-government services. The findings of this study will guide researchers, policy makers and professionals towards the Jordanian citizen' priorities in improving website design, website functions, website content quality, ease of use and security; thereby increasing the adoption of e-government services.

Strategic Implications of Ad-Blockers and Limited Ad-Blocking

Ad-blockers enable consumers to block ads on websites. While ad-blockers began as user-oriented initiatives promising to block all ads, many now allow limited display of ads. Much of the ensuing debate has questioned the role and intent of the ad-blocker, viewing ad-blocking as a zero-sum game between consumers and the website publisher. We show limited ad-blocking (LAB) can transform ad-blocking to a win-win for all. In fact, even a user-oriented ad-blocker may offer LAB, while also benefiting the publisher and leading to better website content than in the absence of ad-blocking. Specifically, LAB can be used to incentivize content provision in two distinct ways: not just by enabling a publisher monetize website visits from ad-blocker users, but also by limiting the publisher’s ability to attract ad-blocker users if website content quality is low; since, by not blocking all ads, LAB can make a low-quality website less attractive for ad-blocker users. From the publisher’s perspective, although the publisher faces pressure to lower its website ad intensity to counter ad-blocking, LAB can emerge as an indirect means to discriminate ad intensity across consumers since they sort themselves according to their tolerance for ads through adopting the ad-blocker. We show beneficial discrimination can occur if consumers with higher valuation of content quality also find ads more disruptive and are less tolerant of ads. Interestingly, the ad-blocker may be more widely adopted when it employs LAB than when it does not. Furthermore, even a user-oriented ad-blocker may charge its users a fee.

Evaluation of the content quality of websites for recurrent aphthous ulcers and oral lichen planus

BackgroundThe Internet is one of the most popular resources for people to obtain medical information; however, only a limited number of studies have reported the quality of the available health information related to oral mucosal diseases. The present study aimed to evaluate the quality of information on websites for recurrent aphthous ulcers (RAU) and oral lichen planus (OLP), in both Chinese and English.MethodsCommon search engines, BaiDu, Google, and Yahoo in Chinese; and Bing, Google, and Yahoo in English were used to identify websites providing content related to the oral mucosal diseases. The first 100 links for keywords “recurrent aphthous ulcers” and “oral lichen planus” were visited and content was downloaded within 24 h. Two separate trained researchers use the validated DISCERN rating instrument and JAMA benchmarks to evaluate the content. The rating scores were analyzed and the quality was assessed according to the scores and content of websites.ResultsA total of 145 websites for RAU and 128 of OLP were analyzed. Based on the DISCERN instrument, the quality of the content in websites for both diseases, whether in English or Chinese, was not high, generally scoring 2 to 3 (max. 5). Only 13 of the RAU websites and 21 of the OLP websites fulfilled the four criteria of the JAMA benchmarks. Generally, the scores of the English websites were higher than those of the Chinese websites. During the twelve searches, only four (Yahoo of RAU in Chinese, Bing and Yahoo of RAU in English, and Google of OLP in Chinese) showed moderate correlation between the website’s ranking and their rating scores. People cannot obtain high quality medical information if they only look at the top ranked sites on the viewing lists. Websites belonging to universities or medical centers had relatively higher scores compared with the others.ConclusionsThe quality of the content on websites relating to RAU and OLP in Chinese and English was moderate. More good quality websites and information are needed in the future.

Perception of Stakeholders on Quality of Corporate Reporting on Websites

Corporate reporting relates to communication of financial and non-financial information regarding resources and performance of a company. Websites are a popular medium of corporate reporting. The present study aims to look at the perception of stakeholders on the quality of the websites. To assess the quality of website in this study we have taken websites of BSE 200 Index companies and studied them on a scale consisting of 37 items relating to technological aspects of the website. To analyse the perceptions of stakeholders on quality of website content we have administered a structured questionnaire with 255 respondents. Analysis shows that quality of website content is good as revealed by 57.30% respondents; 54.90% of the respondents consider that information content available on website is good and 52.90% believe that reliability of website information is average. The chi-square result of stakeholder groups is insignificant, which shows that they have similar perception that quality of website content is good. Quality of website content depends upon two main factors as revealed by factor analysis, that is, characteristics of website content and accessibility of information.

Degree of suitability of information (DSI) for children with idiopathic scoliosis and their parents

Background As parents and their children increasingly use Internet website to obtain information about Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (AIS), a growing need to evaluate the content quality of websites is emerging. Bettany-Saltikov et al. and MacCulloch et al. have suggested some suitable requirements that websites on scoliosis should include. From these suggestions, we have created an instrument to quantify this suitability.

Summary of: the quality of online information regarding dental implants.

Aims and objectives To analyse the quality of online information available to patients regarding dental implants. Design Cross sectional survey. Setting The websites analysed were UK based, owned by private practices and NHS secondary and tertiary care services. Information was collated in November 2013. Methods UK-based websites were analysed using UK based search engines. Outcome measures Websites were analysed based on content and reliability. Information regarding the speciality of authors and accreditation/affiliation to professional groups/medical institutions was also collated. Results Overall, website content quality was low, with 63% of sites averaging below 7/14 for their mean summed website content scores, and 67% of sites averaging below 8/16 for their mean reliability scores. 86.7% were accredited by a recognised national/international dental/surgical body but only 26.7% were affiliated to a professional group/medical institution. The authors were mainly dentists (73.3%). Conclusions These findings suggest that the online information regarding implant treatment is generally of low quality and many aspects such as long term outcomes and complications are overlooked. There is a need for the improvement of the quality of online information available to patients in order to make the best use of this tool in helping patients to make informed choices about their dental care. The Internet has the potential to dramatically change the clinician-patient relationship. Moreover, in light of the guidelines produced by the General Dental Council (GDC) in 2012 on the principles of ethical advertising, GDC registrants run the risk of fitness to practise proceedings and medico-legal challenges if the website content has potential to mislead patients.

The quality of online information regarding dental implants.

To analyse the quality of online information available to patients regarding dental implants. Cross sectional survey.Setting The websites analysed were UK based, owned by private practices and NHS secondary and tertiary care services. Information was collated in November 2013. UK-based websites were analysed using UK based search engines.Outcome measures Websites were analysed based on content and reliability. Information regarding the speciality of authors and accreditation/affiliation to professional groups/medical institutions was also collated. Overall, website content quality was low, with 63% of sites averaging below 7/14 for their mean summed website content scores, and 67% of sites averaging below 8/16 for their mean reliability scores. 86.7% were accredited by a recognised national/international dental/surgical body but only 26.7% were affiliated to a professional group/medical institution. The authors were mainly dentists (73.3%). These findings suggest that the online information regarding implant treatment is generally of low quality and many aspects such as long term outcomes and complications are overlooked. There is a need for the improvement of the quality of online information available to patients in order to make the best use of this tool in helping patients to make informed choices about their dental care. The Internet has the potential to dramatically change the clinician-patient relationship. Moreover, in light of the guidelines produced by the General Dental Council (GDC) in 2012 on the principles of ethical advertising, GDC registrants run the risk of fitness to practise proceedings and medico-legal challenges if the website content has potential to mislead patients.