Why People Are Willing to Provide Social Support in Online Health Communities: Evidence from Social Exchange Perspective

Zhao, Tao; Du, Rong

doi:10.1007/978-3-030-03649-2_12

Cited by 4 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…Social exchange behaviors in online health communities mainly occur between physicians and patients. Researchers have traditionally explained user behaviors in these communities based on SET, such as the knowledge sharing intention [30], influence factors of providing social support [31], and the motivation of physicians to participate in online health communities [32]. Moreover, gift giving is a form of social exchange, and some researchers have also studied the influencing factors of gift-giving frequency in social network services based on SET [33].…”

Section: Related Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of the Price of Gifts From Patients on Physicians’ Service Quality in Online Consultations: Empirical Study Based on Social Exchange Theory

Wang¹,

Wu²,

Xia³

et al. 2020

J Med Internet Res

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Background Gift giving from patients to physicians, which is prohibited in traditional clinical settings in China, has been found to occur in online health communities. However, there is debate on the validity of online gifts since physicians gain an economic benefit. Moreover, the potential impact of these gifts, particularly with respect to the financial value of the gift, on the online consultation service quality remains unexplored. Objective The aim of this study was to explore the impact of gift price on the quality of physicians’ online consultation service. Insight into this impact is expected to help resolve existing debate on the appropriateness of the gift-giving practice in online consultations. Methods A dataset of 141 physicians and 4249 physician-patient interactions was collected from the Good Physician Online website, which is the largest online consultation platform in China. Based on social exchange theory, we investigated how gift price affects the quality of physicians’ online consultation service and how this impact changes according to the physician’s service price and number of all gifts received. Manual annotation was used to identify the information support paragraphs and emotional support paragraphs in the answers of physicians. The quality of the information support paragraphs, rather than the complete answer, was used to test the robustness of our model. Results Gift price had a positive impact on the quality of physicians’ online consultation service (β=4.941, P<.01). This impact was negatively mediated by both the physician’s service price (β=–9.245, P<.001) and the total number of gifts they received (β=–5.080, P<.001). Conclusions Gift price has a positive impact on physicians’ online behavior, although the impact varies among physicians.

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Section: Related Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of the Price of Gifts From Patients on Physicians’ Service Quality in Online Consultations: Empirical Study Based on Social Exchange Theory

Wang¹,

Wu²,

Xia³

et al. 2020

J Med Internet Res

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…We focused on a key set of predictors, especially empowerment, because the literature has emphasized that this construct had a strong influence on patient compliance [58]. Prior research highlights that OHCs provide their members with the social support that leads them to feel a heightened sense of empowerment [59,60]. Other related constructs might be relevant as well, such as self-efficacy or perceived usefulness.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Three Antecedents of Patient Compliance for Users of Peer-to-Peer Online Health Communities: Cross-Sectional Study

Audrain‐Pontevia¹,

Menvielle²,

Ertz³

2019

J Med Internet Res

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BackgroundOver the past 50 years, patient noncompliance has appeared as a major public health concern and focus of a great deal of research because it endangers patient recovery and imposes a considerable financial burden on health care systems. Meanwhile, online health communities (OHCs) are becoming more common and are commonly used by individuals with health problems, and they may have a role in facilitating compliance. Despite this growing popularity, little is known about patient compliance predictors for OHCs’ users.ObjectiveThis study aimed to investigate the extent to which participating in OHCs may trigger higher levels of compliance. It identified 3 interrelated predictors that may affect patient compliance: patient empowerment gained through peer-to-peer OHCs, satisfaction with the physician, and commitment to the physician.MethodsA Web-based survey tested the conceptual model and assessed the effects of patient empowerment gained through OHCs on patient satisfaction and commitment to the physician, as well as the effects of these 3 predictors on patient compliance with the proposed treatment. Members of peer-to-peer OHCs were asked to answer an online questionnaire. A convenience sample of 420 patients experiencing chronic illness and using peer-to-peer OHCs was surveyed in August 2018 in Québec, Canada. A path analysis using structural equation modeling tested the proposed relationships between the predictors and their respective paths on patient compliance. The mediation effects of these predictor variables on patient compliance were estimated with the PROCESS macro in SPSS.ResultsThe findings indicated that patient empowerment gained through OHCs was positively related to patient commitment to the physician (beta=.69; P<.001) and patient compliance with the proposed treatment (beta=.35; P<.001). Patient commitment also positively influenced patient compliance (beta=.74; P<.001). Patient empowerment did not exert a significant influence on patient satisfaction with the physician (beta=.02; P=.76), and satisfaction did not affect compliance (beta=−.07; P=.05); however, patient satisfaction was positively related to patient commitment to the physician (beta=.14; P<.01). The impact of empowerment on compliance was partially mediated by commitment to the physician (beta=.32; 95% CI 0.22-0.44) but not by satisfaction.ConclusionsThis study highlights the importance of peer-to-peer OHCs for two main reasons. The primary reason is that patient empowerment gained through peer-to-peer OHCs both directly and indirectly enhances patient compliance with the proposed treatment. The underlying mechanisms of these effects were shown. Second, commitment to the physician was found to play a more critical role than satisfaction with the physician in determining patient-physician relationship quality. Overall, our findings support the assumption that health care stakeholders should encourage the use of peer-to-peer OHCs to favor patient empowerment and patient commitment to the physician to increase patient compliance w...

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Factors influencing user’s health information discernment abilities in online health communities: based on SEM and fsQCA

Wei,

Cai,

Liu

et al. 2024

Front. Public Health

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IntroductionOnline health communities have become the main source for people to obtain health information. However, the existence of poor-quality health information, misinformation, and rumors in online health communities increases the challenges in governing information quality. It not only affects users’ health decisions but also undermines social stability. It is of great significance to explore the factors that affect users’ ability to discern information in online health communities.MethodsThis study integrated the Stimulus-Organism-Response Theory, Information Ecology Theory and the Mindsponge Theory to constructed a model of factors influencing users’ health information discernment abilities in online health communities. A questionnaire was designed based on the variables in the model, and data was collected. Utilizing Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) in conjunction with fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fsQCA), the study analyzed the complex causal relationships among stimulus factors, user perception, and the health information discernment abilities.ResultsThe results revealed that the dimensions of information, information environment, information technology, and information people all positively influenced health information discernment abilities. Four distinct configurations were identified as triggers for users’ health information discernment abilities. The core conditions included information source, informational support, technological security, technological facilitation, and perceived risk. It was also observed that information quality and emotional support can act as substitutes for one another, as can informational support and emotional support.DiscussionThis study provides a new perspective to study the influencing factors of health information discernment abilities of online health community users. It can provide experiences and references for online health community information services, information resource construction and the development of users’ health information discernment abilities.

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Why People Are Willing to Provide Social Support in Online Health Communities: Evidence from Social Exchange Perspective

Cited by 4 publications

References 29 publications

Impact of the Price of Gifts From Patients on Physicians’ Service Quality in Online Consultations: Empirical Study Based on Social Exchange Theory

Impact of the Price of Gifts From Patients on Physicians’ Service Quality in Online Consultations: Empirical Study Based on Social Exchange Theory

Effects of Three Antecedents of Patient Compliance for Users of Peer-to-Peer Online Health Communities: Cross-Sectional Study

Factors influencing user’s health information discernment abilities in online health communities: based on SEM and fsQCA

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