Examining the relationship between health literacy and individual and sociodemographic factors in secondary school students

Pendl, Dominik; Maitz, Katharina; Gasteiger‐Klicpera, Barbara

doi:10.1007/s10389-023-01836-1

Cited by 1 publication

(1 citation statement)

References 68 publications

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“…Several studies since then have explored both performance-based and self-assessed HL but they still remain limited. They either measured different types of HL, such as self-assessed tool to measure eHealth Literacy, which refers to the ability to seek, find, understand, and appraise health information from electronic sources [25], and performance-based tool to measure HL [26][27][28]. Some others used two performance-based tools [29], or a single screening question as the second HL tool [30].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing perceived and functional health literacy among parents in Cyprus: A cross-sectional study

Menikou,

Middleton,

Papastavrou

et al. 2023

PLoS ONE

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Background Parents often must take decisions regarding their children’s health, which requires certain skills and competences. Parental health literacy (HL) is important in establishing positive health-promoting behaviours and better health outcomes to their children. Limited parental HL has been associated with various negative children’s health outcomes. The aim of the study was to explore perceived and functional HL among parents in Cyprus. Method A cross-sectional study was conducted with a convenience sample of 416 parents of children, aged 6 months to 15 years old, presenting in pediatric outpatient departments across three Cypriot cities. Participants completed the HLS-EU-Q47, a self-reported measure of HL, and the NVS (Newest Vital Sign), a performance-based measure of HL. Associations with socio-demographic characteristics and health behaviors were explored. Results Based on suggested ranges, among 416 parents, mostly mothers (83.2%), almost half of parents (42.6%) were classified as having inadequate or problematic perceived HL. Consistently, 62.8% showed high likelihood or significant possibility of limited functional HL, based on the NVS with a mean score of 2.73 out of 6 (SD = 2.02). Nevertheless, no correlation was observed between the two measures of HL. Limited parental perceived HL was statistically significantly associated with lower educational attainment, lower number of children in the family, increased self-assessed health status, and limited exercise habits. Limited parental functional HL was statistically significantly associated with female gender, younger age, lower educational attainment, receiving financial aid, lower family income, and lower alcohol consumption. Conclusion Even though there was lack of agreement in the classification according to the HLS-EU-Q47 and the NVS, moderate-to-low levels of perceived HL appear consistent with a performance-based measure of HL. As a high number of parents may face challenges in assessing and applying health information to improve outcomes for their children, with evidence of social gradient, healthcare services should be oriented towards identifying problematic HL while Public Health interventions are needed to enhance parental HL.

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