Consumer health information has proliferated on the Web. However, because virtually anyone can publish this type of information on theWeb, consumers cannot always rely on traditional credibility cues such as reputation of a journal. Instead, they must rely on a variety of cues, including visual presentation, to determine the veracity of information. This study is an examination of the relationship of people's visual design preferences to judgments of credibility of information on consumer health information sites. Subjects were asked to rate their preferences for visual designs of 31 health information sites after a very brief viewing.The sites were then reordered and subjects rated them according to the extent to which they thought the information on the sites was credible. Visual design judgments bore a statistically significant similarity to credibility ratings. Sites with known brands were also highly rated for both credibility and visual design. Theoretical implications are discussed.

Purpose The purpose of this study is to investigate information seeking behavior of immigrants in disadvantaged communities in the state of CO, USA, using school choice decisions as a problematic situation. The study investigated the extent to which immigrant families in poor neighborhoods took advantage of school choice policies and the extent to which these decisions were mediated by information seeking activities. Design/methodology/approach Quantitative study using survey questionnaire was used. The study design used everyday life information seeking behavior (Savolainen, 1995) and information-poverty lived-experiences of poor people (Chatman and Pendelton, 1995) as a framework and theoretical lens, respectively. Parents of school-age children who met the criteria of “poor” based on the federal poverty guideline were recruited to participate in the study. Findings The study found that only 21 per cent (24 families out of 113) participated in school choice programs. Within the smaller group of parents that took advantage of school choice policy, 72 per cent gathered information before choosing a school, and of this group, about 80 per cent asked friends followed by school visit and a phone call to schools as information sources. Library use as sources of information was also selected by 61 per cent of the respondents. One important finding of this study is that although a majority of the families are aware of school choice policy, their level of participation is low and that is largely due to their economic and life circumstances. Social implications Access to quality education is widely investigated and multiple entities have a stake in it, including parents, policymakers, researchers and school districts. The social implications of this study are significant in that the mere presence and awareness of school choice policy did not translate into increased participation by parents from disadvantaged communities for whom the policy was designed to benefit. Consistent with findings in the extant literature, parents in low socio-economic status also value quality education for their children. To address the issue of low participation in school choice, cities need to work toward strengthening schools and library systems in poor neighborhoods instead of diverting resources away. Originality/value Based on two theoretical accounts – i.e. the information-poverty lived-experiences of poor people, or the outsiders, (Chatman, 1999, 1996), and theory of everyday life information seeking (Savolainen, 1995) – this study investigated how immigrants and disadvantaged communities seek, acquire and use information to navigate school choice policy in the city of Aurora, CO. The findings of this study are relevant for educators, policymakers, libraries, school districts, cities, counties and parents to determine the necessary policy measures that are required to increase school choice participation by immigrants and disadvantaged communities.

This paper presents the results of research of an experimental research method, the factorial survey, investigating the health information seeking preferences of older adults (60 years and older). Volunteer subjects from rural, urban, and suburban areas in Ohio participated in this study; 450 subjects responded to health information seeking vignettes (the key feature of factorial surveys) and provided demographic data. Using regression analysis and ANOVA, findings from this study address preferences for the format of materials, information on particular health topics, and, preferences for receiving assistance from information providers such as librarians, nurses, pharmacists, and, doctors. IntroductionHealth information seeking behaviors, including social, economic, educational, and agerelated aspects of those seeking health information, can be studied at many levels. These behaviors can be studied at the level of the individual, the information provider, and the information provider network of relationships, services, and resources. We conducted a 2-part research project to address the health information seeking behaviors of older adults. We examined this issue experimentally with a factorial survey of older adults and with focus groups of library and community health care professionals, and, health literacy specialists.Through use of a factorial survey, we came to a better understanding of individual health information seeking preferences for format, provider, assistance, and content as well as the potential relationships between those preferences and knowledge, skills, and access to health information. The results of the factorial survey are reported in this paper. While this project uses an exemplar of older adults, the research method has the potential to be used to study other groups in order to better understand preferences affected by knowledge, access and skills related to accessing and using health information. The hoped-for result is that health information programs and services, informed by these research findings, will be more effective, more efficient, more outcomes-oriented, and more responsive.There are many efforts across the U.S.A. focusing on eliminating health care disparities. For example, one of the goals of a broadly embraced framework, Healthy People 2010 (U.S. , 2000), is to identify and address health disparities in segments of the American population. Contributing factors to disparities include access to and use of health information. The research presented in this paper, which addresses the health information seeking decisions of older adults, identifies essential health information factors that may contribute to disparate health care as expressed by the preferences of subjects. These factors include literacy skills, health challenges, preferences for information format and provider. Department of Health and Human Services Approach to the ResearchWithin the next twenty years, the United States will be faced with increased pressure on its health care delivery mechanisms as the dramatic ...

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In exploring many of the divides that constitute the Digital Divide, this study examines skills, attitudes, and experiences of the individuals most likely to be affected by a lack of computer access and skill. As social scientist Robert Putnam argues, disparities in information and communication technologies access and skills may represent a "cyberapartheid" that diminishes the store. . .