AND SENSE OF EMPOWERMENTThe purpose of this study was to examine the relationships among motives for health-related YouTube use, cognitive involvement with health information on YouTube, post-exposure online activity, and sense of empowerment regarding health and health care. As a result of the analysis of data from 263 participants, social utility, convenient information-seeking, habit-passing time, and exciting entertainment motives were identified as four motives for health-related YouTube use. Social utility and convenient information-seeking motives were positively related to cognitive involvement and cognitive involvement was positively related to perceived control.Social utility motive was negatively related to perceived competence, whereas convenient information-seeking motive was positively related to perceived competence. Habit-passing time motive was negatively related to goal internalization, whereas convenient information-seeking and exciting entertainment motives were positively related to goal internalization. The findings from this study imply that YouTube could be a useful health communication media for health professionals and organizations to use for empowering users in coping with health-related concerns. With respect to this, YouTube, the online video-sharing website, can offer users a unique opportunity to be active and interactive in health communication with others. Specifically, YouTube enables users not only to conveniently search for or post health-related content (e.g., videos or comments) for free, but also to "reproduce, transport, and share stored information in ways that are quicker … than older analog media forms" (Warnick & Heineman, 2012, p. 70). Also, YouTube can serve as a health-related online forum and social network by "facilitating user interaction through comments, video responses, and email messages" (Kopacz & Lawton, 2013, p. 19).Existing research has indicated that YouTube serves as a health-related online forum for the discussion of health-related issues such as the human papillomavirus Uses and GratificationsThe social and psychological theory, uses and gratifications suggests:an audience-centered perspective that assumes (a) media behavior is purposive, goal-directed and motivated, (b) people select media content to satisfy their needs or desires, (c) social and psychological dispositions mediate that behavior, and (d) the "media compete with other forms of communication--or functional alternatives--such as interpersonal interaction for selection, attention, and use" (Rubin et al., 2003, p. 129).As Kim and Rubin (1997) stated, people "approach the media with variable expectations and goals and seek to gratify their needs and wants" (p. 112), and, indeed, uses and gratifications has been applied to examine why and how people satisfy their specific wants through the utilization of a wide variety of media, including newspaper (Elliott & Rosenberg, 1987), television (Godlewski & Perse, 2010;Perse, 1990b;Rubin, 1981Rubin, , 1983 MotiveGiven that the first assumpt...

Background The majority of middle-aged to older patients with chronic conditions report forgetting to take medications as prescribed. The promotion of patients’ smartphone medication reminder app (SMRA) use shows promise as a feasible and cost-effective way to support their medication adherence. Providing training on SMRA use, guided by the technology acceptance model (TAM), could be a promising intervention to promote patients’ app use. Objective The aim of this pilot study was to (1) assess the feasibility of an SMRA training session designed to increase patients’ intention to use the app through targeting perceived usefulness of app, perceived ease of app use, and positive subjective norm regarding app use and (2) understand the ways to improve the design and implementation of the training session in a hospital setting. Methods A two-group design was employed. A total of 11 patients older than 40 years (median=58, SD=9.55) and taking 3 or more prescribed medications took part in the study on one of two different dates as participants in either the training group (n=5) or nontraining group (n=6). The training group received an approximately 2-hour intervention training session designed to target TAM variables regarding one popular SMRA, the Medisafe app. The nontraining group received an approximately 2-hour control training session where the participants individually explored Medisafe app features. Each training session was concluded with a one-time survey and a one-time focus group. Results Mann-Whitney U tests revealed that the level of perceived ease of use ( P =.13) and the level of intention to use an SMRA ( P =.33) were higher in the training group (median=7.00, median=6.67, respectively) than in the nontraining group (median=6.25, median=5.83). However, the level of perceived usefulness (U=4.50, Z=−1.99, P =.05) and the level of positive subjective norm ( P =.25) were lower in the training group (median=6.50, median=4.29) than in the nontraining group (median=6.92, median=4.50). Focus groups revealed the following participants’ perceptions of SMRA use in the real-world setting that the intervention training session would need to emphasize in targeting perceived usefulness and positive subjective norm: (1) the participants would find an SMRA to be useful if they thought the app could help address specific struggles in medication adherence in their lives and (2) the participants think that their family members (or health care providers) might view positively the participants’ SMRA use in primary care settings (or during routine medical checkups). Conclusions Intervention training session, guided by TAM, appeared feasible in targeting patients’ perceived ease of use and, thereby, increasing intention to use an SMRA. Emphasizing the real-world utility of SMRA, the traini...

Depression is a worldwide health issue to which various physical, psychological, and social health problems are attributable. To address the issue through the promotion of digital mental healthcare content use, this study examines factors influencing people’s intentions to use the content, guided by the technology acceptance model and uses and gratifications theory. A total of 278 students and faculty/staff members at a Korean university tried using a digital mental healthcare content (e.g., artificial intelligence chatbot content) called MyMentalPocket and completed a survey questionnaire associated with their perceptions of the content. Participants’ depression levels, perceived usefulness, and parasocial interactions emerged as significant and positive factors influencing people’s intentions to use MyMentalPocket. Female gender, younger age, and specific motives for depression-related digital technology use (i.e., communication and emotional support, information- and guidance-seeking, and habitual entertainment-seeking motives) emerged as significant and positive factors influencing parasocial interactions. Parasocial interactions and perceived ease of use emerged as significant and positive factors influencing perceived usefulness. The findings from this study imply the utility of AI chatbots as a way to help people, especially females and younger people with depression and interpersonal difficulties, to utilize and benefit from digital mental healthcare content for depression management.