Can Google Searches Predict the Popularity and Harm of Psychoactive Agents?

Jankowski, Wojciech; Hoffmann, Marcin

doi:10.2196/jmir.4033

Cited by 14 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…Data from the GT analysis can help us understand the popularity and harms of different psychoactive agents (Jankowski and Hoffmann 2016). They act as proxy markers for the drug harms in society as they correlate with data obtained from the other measures.…”

Section: Public Health Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Google, Public Health, and Alcohol and Drug Policy

Ghosh

Choudhury

Narasimha

2022

Handbook of Substance Misuse and Addictions

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Section: Public Health Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Google, Public Health, and Alcohol and Drug Policy

Ghosh

Choudhury

Narasimha

2022

Handbook of Substance Misuse and Addictions

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“…Studies have examined Google's increasing involvement in the search for medical information online and have found that despite some deficiencies, it can be an effective medium [31]. Research looking into the information on various medical issues available on the internet using Google as a search engine includes subjects such as views on vaccination [32], psychoactive agents [33], fractures [34], and skin cancer [35].…”

Section: Comparison With Prior Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

Quality and Accuracy of Information Available on Websites for Distracted Driving: Qualitative Analysis (Preprint)

Poon¹,

Gjorgjievski²,

Moga³

et al. 2019

Preprint

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BACKGROUND Distracted driving has become alarmingly widespread, and its prevalence continues to increase despite efforts by government and nongovernment organizations to educate the public about this pervasive problem. Every year, 1.35 million people die, and nearly 80 million people get injured in road traffic incidents. Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death among young people, and distracted driving plays a huge role in road traffic fatalities and injuries. Considering that most people now use the internet as an information source and Google is the most visited website and number one online search engine in the world, we performed a qualitative analysis of information available through Google on distracted driving and its outcomes. OBJECTIVE The goal of this study was to analyze the quality and accuracy of the information on distracted driving and its consequences available to the general public when using Google as a search engine for distracted driving. METHODS In November 2018, a nonregional Google search on distracted driving was conducted. The first two pages of the Google search results were selected for analysis. Data were collected on the type of website, type of distraction, consequences of distracted driving described, presence and referencing of statistics, and orthopedic and nonorthopedic injuries described, with their acute and chronic sequelae. RESULTS In total, we analyzed 25 websites: 12 websites (48%) were from government bodies, which were the most common type of websites; 19 (76%) of the sites provided statistics; and 15 (60%) referenced the source of the statistic. Mobile phones were the most frequently cited type of distraction, with 17 (68%) sites discussing it, while death was the most commonly mentioned consequence of distracted driving, quoted in 15 (60%) of the websites. Additionally, 52% of the sites provided tips on how to avoid distracted driving. Only one website mentioned orthopedic injuries. CONCLUSIONS The prevalence of distracted driving is increasing, and so are the consequences associated with it. Nevertheless, the information available online does not accurately describe the current circumstances regarding this issue. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration attributed 391,000 injuries and 3477 deaths to distracted driving in 2015, which are 5000 more injuries and almost 150 more fatalities compared to 2011. However, despite these figures, most of the websites discussed death as a consequence of distracted driving and often overlooked injuries, even though injuries are over 100 times more likely to occur in distraction-affected crashes. The websites also largely fail to address other forms of driving distractions, like daydreaming or talking to a passenger, and mostly focus on mobile phone–related activities as distractions. More specific information on the dangers of distracted driving and nonlethal trauma may support an overall cultural shift to curb this behavior.

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“…GT has been used effectively to monitor influenza-like illness in the US population [7]. In the context of substance use disorders, GT showed the potential application to monitor the popularity and harms of psychoactive drugs and to detect emerging trends of new psychoactive substance use [8, 9]. GT directly reflects the search behavior, which is a marker of online interest and which, in turn, might suggest population interest or behavior.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Google Trends Data: A Potential New Tool for Monitoring the Opioid Crisis

et al. 2021

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Introduction: There is a need to strengthen the standard surveillance of the opioid overdose crisis in the USA. The role of Google Trends (GT) was explored in this context. Methods: In this study, a systemic GT search was done for a period from January 2004 to December 2018. “Naloxone” and “drug overdose” were chosen as search inputs. By using locally weighted scatterplot smoothing, we locally regressed and smoothed the relative search data generated by the GT search. We conducted a changepoint analysis (CPA) to detect significant statistical changes in the “naloxone” trend from 2004 to 2018. Cross-correlation function analyses were done to examine the correlation between 2 time series: year-wise relative search volume (RSV) for “naloxone” and “drug overdose” with the age-adjusted drug overdose mortality rate. Pearson’s correlation was performed for the state-wise age-adjusted mortality rate due to drug overdose and RSV for “naloxone” and “drug overdose.” Results: Smoothed and regressed GT of “naloxone” were similar to the “opioid overdose” trend published by the National Center for Health Statistics. The CPA showed 2 statistically significant points in 2011 and 2015. CPA of year-wise RSV for “naloxone” and “drug overdose” showed significantly positive correlation with the age-adjusted drug overdose mortality at lag zero. State-wise RSV for “naloxone” and “drug overdose” too showed a strong and significant positive correlation with the state-wise mortality data. Discussion/Conclusion: Inexpensive, publicly accessible, real-time GT data could supplement and strengthen the monitoring of opioid overdose epidemic if used in conjunction with the existing official data sources.

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Can Google Searches Predict the Popularity and Harm of Psychoactive Agents?

Cited by 14 publications

References 21 publications

Google, Public Health, and Alcohol and Drug Policy

Google, Public Health, and Alcohol and Drug Policy

Quality and Accuracy of Information Available on Websites for Distracted Driving: Qualitative Analysis (Preprint)

Google Trends Data: A Potential New Tool for Monitoring the Opioid Crisis

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