OBJECTIVES To explore the association between health literacy and levels of three types of core activities among health promotion volunteers (developing a healthy lifestyle, outreach to family, and outreach to community members). STUDY DESIGN A cross-sectional, anonymous, self-administered postal survey of registered health promotion volunteers in the Konan area in Shiga Prefecture in Japan, ...

Purpose: This paper aims at an understanding of factors that influence the continuance intention to use mobile interest-based community applications, with a focus on the impacts of technology acceptance model (TAM) constructs and experiential value. Design/methodology/approach: Taking a hybrid model combining TAM and extended expectation confirmation model (ECM) as foundation, this study integr...

BACKGROUND Across low-income settings, community volunteers and health committee members support the formal health system - both routinely and amid emergencies - by engaging in health services such as referrals and health education. During the 2014-2015 Ebola epidemic, emerging reports suggest that community engagement was instrumental in interrupting transmission. Nevertheless, literature rega...

BACKGROUND Peer education by volunteers may aid attitudinal change, but there is little understanding of factors assisting the preparation of peer educators. This study contributes to conceptual understandings of how volunteers may be prepared to work as peer educators by drawing on an evaluation of a training programme for peer education for advance care planning (ACP). OBJECTIVES To report ...

BACKGROUND Cellulose masks obtained from natural sources such as bacteria are of interest as cosmetic devices for the treatment of dry skin because they not only improve hydration of the skin, but have low toxicity and are biodegradable. The aims of this study were to determine the in vivo effects of a cellulose mask obtained from Acetobacter xylinum on skin characteristics and to evaluate user...

Knowledge communities allow individuals to share knowledge and collaborate with each other based on common interests. The authors apply socio-technical theory as the overarching theoretical framework to propose a research model which posits that both technical factors (system quality and information quality) and social factors (community governance and pro-sharing norms) collectively influence ...

It is important for occupational health to justify the impact of health promotion programs on job satisfaction, which is associated with work-related outcomes. The aim of this study is to estimate the effects of lifestyle modification activity implemented by the community on job satisfaction, and to analyze the factors which contributed to the improvement of workers' job satisfaction. A lifesty...

OBJECTIVES Studies often fail to adequately test the causal relationship between volunteering and well-being. Yet the media and empirical research have focused attention on the impact of volunteering on the well-being of elderly persons. This study addresses two questions: First, does volunteering improve the psychological and physical well-being of elderly persons? Second, do elderly volunteer...