The logic behind cyberchondria: Longitudinal relations among risk perception, health anxiety, and online health information seeking

Abstract

The cyberchondria phenomenon presents a significant health concern, yet there remains a relative scarcity of research on the formation mechanisms of cyberchondria and its longitudinal studies. Based on the RISP model and C‐A‐C framework, this study aimed to examine the longitudinal associations between risk perception, health anxiety, and online health information seeking (OHIS) within the context of Chinese social media. We used a three‐wave longitudinal survey with 514 participants at one‐month intervals starting September 2023, employing the Random Intercept Cross‐Lagged Panel Model (RI‐CLPM) for data analysis. At the between‐person level, we solely observed significant negative associations between health anxiety and OHIS. At the within‐person level, (1) positively bidirectional associations were noted among the three main variables; (2) causal relationships were identified between risk perception and OHIS, as well as between health anxiety and OHIS; (3) Health anxiety partially mediated the relationship between risk perception and OHIS, and OHIS fully mediated the relationship between health anxiety at T1 and T3; and (4) multi‐group analyses showed that gender differences in RI‐CLPM were significant, while age differences were insignificant. The results offer theoretical and practical insights for health practitioners, information seekers, and social media platforms.