Understanding Health Information Behaviors of Migrant Domestic Workers during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Strategies for Assessing Health Information Credibility Among Older Social Media Users in China: A Qualitative Study

The fact that social media gives users easy access to online health information raises the question of what information evaluation strategies older adults use to distinguish trustworthy from unreliable health information. Identifying how older adults assess the credibility of health information that they acquire on social media is an important step toward understanding and reducing their susceptibility to health misinformation. In this study, we investigated the credibility assessment strategies used by older WeChat users in China. Following a qualitative approach, we conducted in-depth interviews with 40 WeChat users 65-85 years old (M = 71.75, SD = 6.65) in China who had acquired health information on WeChat. Results of theoretical thematic analysis revealed five source-based and content-based evaluative strategies: (1) determining the communicative orientation of the source, (2) assessing source reputation, (3) confirming content based on life experiences, (4) checking for exaggeration in claimed effects, and (5) assessing the consistency of content across sources. Older WeChat users' reliance on certain heuristic cues and their self-reliant approach to assessing information credibility provide contextual explanations for the link between heuristic processing and susceptibility to health misinformation. The findings have implications for anti-misinformation interventions targeting the older population in China and potentially beyond.

Parental COVID-19-related health information practises, sources, evaluations and needs: A qualitative interview study

BACKGROUND

Parents of infants and young children may have specific health information needs and preferences, as they are responsible for their children's health. COVID-19 posed many challenges for families, not least in terms of the constantly updated disease-prevention guidelines. However, little is known about parents' experiences with this unprecedented situation, that is, how and where they seek, use and evaluate COVID-19 (child)-specific health information. We aimed to find out more about this to provide insights to health (information) providers when communicating pandemic information to parents.

METHODS

We conducted semistructured telephone interviews (August to October 2020) with a purposively selected sample of 20 German-speaking and 10 Arabic-speaking parents of children up to 4 years old. Recruitment occurred through multiple channels, including childcare institutions and social media. Qualitative content analysis of the interview transcripts illustrates the main differences between the two groups.

RESULTS

By the time the interviews were conducted (mid-2020), some parents reported to seek information less actively or not at all, compared to the beginning of COVID-19. German speakers frequently used Google to obtain information, whereas Arabic speakers mentioned social media (particularly Facebook) as a central source. However, medical providers were the most trusted source for child health. Though determining the credibility of online information was difficult for some parents, others, mostly German speakers (middle-high education), were aware of some author-related criteria. When deciding on information use, parents often rely on their own judgement and gut instinct. Besides the necessity to disseminate information via multiple outlets to reach all parents, Arabic speakers desired audio-visual and translation tools to facilitate understanding.

DISCUSSION AND PUBLIC CONCLUSION

Apart from education, language and knowledge of the health system and of the attributes of credible information may determine its quality and consequent decisions. There seems to be a considerable need to foster knowledge about reliable information sources, a greater understanding of the range of quality criteria and specific support for nonnative speakers, not least to better inform parents' decision-making.

PATIENT AND PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION

A parent panel (n = 7) contributed to gathering ideas regarding recruitment, discussing initial results and the choice of topics and questions for a second interview phase.