Health Information behaviour during COVID-19 outbreak among Egyptian library and information science undergraduate students

Abstract

Health information shared on the Internet has the potential to improve people’s quality of life. However, the level of health information literacy and informational skills determines the individuals’ ability to obtain credible health information useful for them. This study investigates the Egyptian LIS undergraduates’ health information behaviour during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study has adopted a quantitative approach using a questionnaire to explore library and information science undergraduates’ health information behaviour. A sample of 161 students answered a questionnaire. The data were analysed using SPSS software. The study results show that official health websites, social media, and family and friends are the primary sources for health information for the participants. The findings also revealed that the sample has adequate health information skills, though many of the participants still need to raise their information literacy skills. Information credibility and personal beliefs were found to affect the participants’ decision to share health information on the Internet. One of the limitations of the study is that the sample selected in this study was LIS students who are trained to find reliable information as part of their education. Findings may be different for the “average” student. Furthermore, the questionnaire was distributed in one university, which means that the results cannot be generalised in other LIS departments using different courses. Therefore, more studies need to be conducted in other LIS departments with different course plans as they may produce different results. This study explores the health information behaviour of LIS undergraduates during the COVID-19 pandemic. The current study results may help develop the course plan in many LIS departments in Egypt and the Middle East, which would help improve the students’ health information literacy.

How social media fosters the elders' COVID-19 preventive behaviors: perspectives of information value and perceived threat

“…Health information is more reliable as they are designed by experts (Chen et al, 2020) and e-government (Park and Lee, 2018). Information credibility and primary sources of official websites, social media, families and friends capture an important role in health information behavior during COVID-19 (Shehata, 2020). Park (2020) supported the positive impact of source credibility on information usefulness, which results in information adoption toward social media.…”

“…Furthermore, if users gain information, they will express sentiments and adopt the diffusion of healthcare knowledge (Oh and Lee, 2019). Other scholars supported that information usefulness boosts information adoption toward social media (Park, 2020) and health information skills under COVID-19 (Shehata, 2020). Al-Omairi et al (2020) found that relevant, timely information acts a crucial role in fostering credibility toward e-government services.…”

The information‐seeking behavior of medical sciences students toward COVID‐19 in mass and social media: A cross‐sectional study

“…In line with our study, a study by Schäfer et al 37 showed that German students primarily searched for information on COVID‐19 online. A study in Egypt also found that students preferred online websites to learn about the COVID‐19 38 …”

What Is the Flag We Rally Around? Trust in Information Sources at the Outset of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Latvia

“…We included also social networking sites (SNS) in our research as these sites have become a notable source of information for some individuals. The COVID-19 pandemic motivated people to increase their search for health information on the Internet, which, however, oftentimes caused more confusion and anxiety instead of helping (Mohammadi et al 2020;Shetata 2020).…”