Help with health information on the web

Abstract

PurposeIn recent years, there has been a proliferation of online resources that offer health information. However, there is no guarantee that all intended users will be able to use these resources effectively. This study seeks to investigate the types of help features that are available through existing internet‐based health information resources that support the use of these resources.Design/methodology/approachAn investigation of 30 such resources was carried out with the objective of answering these questions. The paper intends to answer the following research questions: What types of help features are available in existing online health information resources? How can their formats and presentation styles be characterised based on existing interface design guidelines from the Human‐Computer Interaction (HCI) community? Were there any differences in the manner in which different internet‐based health information providers presented evidence‐based information?FindingsThe study discovered a range of help features being employed in these resources, ranging from step‐by‐step guides outlining the use of site features to the inclusion of links to resources that cater to user groups, who speak a language other than English. Further to this, the study also found that resources that were consumer‐based and commercially‐funded predominantly favoured the use of implicit help features to improve user access, whilst government‐funded libraries were more likely to make use of explicit help features to aid users in the use of specific features.Originality/valueThis study provides insightful information regarding current status and problems of the help features in existing online health information resources.

Assessing the credibility of Web information by university students: findings from a case study in Iran

“…With the advent of the Web, many studies have been conducted by researchers from different fields using various approaches. The evaluation of the credibility of Web resources is one of the areas of research for many related disciplines such as health information (Jung et al, 2016;Liew, 2011;Huntington et al, 2007;Chu et al, 2018;Gao et al, 2015;Yang and Beatty, 2016), media and communication (Shen et al, 2019;Stvilia et al, 2005;Mansour, 2016;Chung et al, 2010;Han et al, 2014;Flanagin et al, 2018), higher education (Metzger et al, 2003;Madden et al, 2012), academic content (Kubiszewski et al, 2011), accounting and finance (Epping and Wilder, 2011), information science (Lucassen et al, 2013), marketing (O'Reilly and Marx, 2011) and nursing (Cader, 2013).…”

“…Studies showed that with increasing information resources on the internet, students are rarely using the university library to retrieve information, and their use of the Web as a source of information has increased remarkably (Metzger et al, 2003). Research also shows that people rely heavily on the internet to retrieve information, and university students are an avid user group of this technology (Flanagin and Metzger, 2001, 2011, 2013.…”

Credibility evaluation of scientific information on websites: Designing and evaluating an exploratory model

“…Health information (Chu et al, 2018; Gao et al, 2015; Huntington et al, 2007; Jung et al, 2016; Khosrowjerdi, 2019; Kim et al, 1999; Liew, 2011; Yang and Beatty, 2016);…”

User involvement and system support in applying search tactics

“…Explicit help, typically labeled “help,” is designed to support users’ learning processes in using an IR system. In contrast, implicit help features support users’ learning by presenting frequently asked questions, information feedback, and search tips; researchers found that users’ preferred implicit help over explicit help in learning systems (Liew, ; Trenner, ; Xie & Cool, ).…”

“…In IR system design, researchers have suggested various system features optimized for different types of user involvement. In particular, they propose varying system design options that assist different levels and types of user involvement (Herrouz, Khentout, & Djoudi, ; Liew, ; Makri, Blandford, & Cox, ; Mu, Ryu, & Lu, ; Vilar & Zumer, ). IR systems need to offer appropriate system support to better facilitate user involvement in different activities of the search process.…”