Dissemination and Acceptance of COVID-19 Misinformation in Iran: A Qualitative Study

Instagram for audience engagement: an evaluation of CERC framework in the GCC nations for digital public health during the Covid-19 pandemic

BACKGROUND

In this study, we investigate the utilization of Instagram by public health ministries across the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations to disseminate health-related information during the COVID-19 pandemic. With Instagram's visual-centric approach and high user engagement, the research aims to investigate its critical yet complex role in information dissemination amid a health crisis.

METHODS

To examine how Instagram communication strategies align with the CDC's Crisis and Emergency Risk Communication (CERC) framework, we employ the content analysis method. This approach helps to evaluate the effectiveness and challenges of employing Instagram for health communication within a region known for its significant social media usage.

RESULTS

Findings indicate that Instagram serves as a vital platform for the rapid dissemination of health information in the GCC, leveraging its visual capabilities and wide reach. The GCC ministries of health utilized Instagram to demonstrate a consistent and strategic approach to communicate essential COVID-19 related information. Kuwait and Bahrain were the most active of all the assessed ministries with respect to the number of engagement metrics (likes and comments). Most of the posts, as per the CERC framework, were informational and related to vaccine infection and death cases. The second most salient theme in line with the CERC framework was about promoting actions, followed by Instagram posts about activities, events, and campaigns.

CONCLUSIONS

The research underscores Instagram's potential as a powerful tool in enhancing public health resilience and responsiveness during health emergencies in the GCC. It suggests that leveraging social media, with careful consideration of its affordances, can contribute significantly to effective health communication strategies in times of crisis.

Theoretical issues in medical library and information sciences' articles published in scopus and web of science databases: A scoping review

Nowadays, professions with stronger theoretical background usually have a better standing among other academic fields. The field of Medical Library and Information Science (MLIS) also requires developments in theoretical issues to increase its ranking and provide more effective support services and higher quality research. The aim of this study was to conduct a scoping review of publications in MLIS in Scopus and Web of Sciences databases to identify the underlying theoretical issues in this field. The research method was a scoping review conducted in February 2022. Articles published in the field of MLIS for which the main theme or research outcomes were based on theoretical foundations, patterns, frameworks, theories and models, and without limitation on time were retrieved from Web of Science and Scopus databases. The retrieved articles were analyzed after necessary screening and evaluation. Based on the determined criteria, 49 articles were eventually analyzed. Patterns, theories, frameworks, and models used in the articles have been categorized into six general groups: (1) information (general) and information literacy; (2) models of evaluation and support services in libraries and information centers; (3) clinical, embedded librarianship, and professional librarianship; (4) scientometrics, selection and evaluation of articles, journals, and serials; (5) open access content; and (6) psychological and sociological models. The results indicate that published articles in the field of MLIS have used a considerable range of models, theories, and frameworks as the most important elements of theoretical concepts. These models, theories, and frameworks have been categorized into six main groups, a number of which have been involving collection development, organization of material, and most have been overseeing the distribution of information and support services in libraries and information centers. Whereas MLIS is an interdisciplinary field with specific applications for access to and distribution of information, it still has considerable potential for presenting models, frameworks, and theories.

Infodemic and fake news - A comprehensive overview of its global magnitude during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021: A scoping review

The spread of fake news increased dramatically during the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide. This study aims to synthesize the extant literature to understand the magnitude of this phenomenon in the wake of the pandemic in 2021, focusing on the motives and sociodemographic profiles, Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based tools developed, and the top trending topics related to fake news. A scoping review was adopted targeting articles published in five academic databases (January 2021-November 2021), resulting in 97 papers. Most of the studies were empirical in nature (N = 69) targeting the general population (N = 26) and social media users (N = 13), followed by AI-based detection tools (N = 27). Top motives for fake news sharing include low awareness, knowledge, and health/media literacy, Entertainment/Pass Time/Socialization, Altruism, and low trust in government/news media, whilst the phenomenon was more prominent among those with low education, males and younger. Machine and deep learning emerged to be the widely explored techniques in detecting fake news, whereas top topics were related to vaccine, virus, cures/remedies, treatment, and prevention. Immediate intervention and prevention efforts are needed to curb this anti-social behavior considering the world is still struggling to contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus.