Many research-based models of information seeking behaviour are limited in their ability to describe everyday life information seeking. Such models tend to focus on active information seeking, to the neglect of less-directed practices. Models are often based on studies of scholars or professionals, and many have been developed using a cognitive approach to model building. This article reports o...

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES To define help seeking and identify a theoretical framework to explain the help-seeking process of patients with self-discovered cancer symptoms. DATA SOURCES Literature published in English from 1998-2008. DATA SYNTHESIS Findings highlighted gender's role in help-seeking behavior. Delayed help seeking for cancer symptoms was common, with many associated influencing facto...

With the aim of improving human-centric risk communication, this research in progress paper argues for a social-cognitive perspective focusing on the interaction between laypeople and the information environment. A model is designed to predict laypeople’s environmental risk perception and information seeking behavior. Using data from a national online survey (N=1,032), our research is an effort...

BACKGROUND Health information is increasingly being disseminated online, but there is a knowledge gap between Latinos and non-Hispanic whites, particularly those whose English language proficiency is poor, in terms both of online health information-seeking behavior and computer literacy skills. This knowledge gap may also exist between US- and foreign-born Latinos. OBJECTIVE The specific aim ...

OBJECTIVES Many veterans return from combat experiencing a variety of mental health concerns. Previous research has documented a stigma associated with seeking treatment that interferes with the decision to seek treatment. This study, conceptualized using the theory of planned behavior, assessed beliefs about mental health treatment in order to understand mental health treatment seeking behavio...

This paper was commissioned by Professor Gernot Wersig of the Freie Universität, Berlin in 1980, as part of his Project, Methodeninstrumentarium zur Benutzforschung in Information und Dokumentation. It attempted to set out what was, for the time, a novel perspective on appropriate methodologies for the study of human information seeking behaviour, focusing on qualitative methods and action rese...

BACKGROUND Use of dietary supplements is common among people living with HIV/AIDS. Because dietary supplements are used in the context of other health behaviors, they may have direct and indirect health benefits. However, supplements may also be associated with vulnerability to medical misinformation and unfounded health claims. We examined use of dietary supplements among people living with HI...

BACKGROUND Although vaccinations are critical for preventing emerging infectious diseases, scant research has been conducted on risk communication. With socio-economic characteristics, health behavior, and underlying diseases under control, we investigated associations between media use, health information-seeking behavior, health information type, and vaccination in the population. METHODS T...

Background: Clinical depression has been increasingly prevalent in international health statistics but people are often found to be reluctant to seek help when they encounter depression. However, there is no general theory to explain how personal, social and cultural factors affect an individual’s help-seeking intention, nor to guide the design of preventive programmes for such intention once n...