The Relationship Between Information Sources, Health Literacy, and COVID-19 Knowledge in the COVID-19 Infodemic: Cross-sectional Online Study in Japan

Abstract

Background The COVID-19 pandemic has caused not only a disease epidemic but also an infodemic. Due to the increased use of the internet and social media, along with the development of communication technology, information has spread faster and farther during the COVID-19 infodemic. Moreover, the increased choice of information sources has made it more difficult to make sound decisions regarding information. Although social media is the most common source of misinformation, other forms of media can also spread misinformation. However, the media sources used by people with high health literacy and COVID-19 knowledge to obtain information are unclear. Furthermore, the association between the use of multiple information sources and health literacy or COVID-19 knowledge is ill-defined. Objective This study aims to examine the following 3 aspects regarding the COVID-19 infodemic: (1) the relationship between health literacy, COVID-19 knowledge, and the number of information sources used; (2) the impact of media use on health literacy; and (3) the impact of media use on COVID-19 knowledge. Methods An online cross-sectional study was conducted in November 2021. Participants were 477 individuals aged 20-69 years. After obtaining consent to participate in the study, participants were asked about sociodemographic indicators, sources of health-related information, health literacy, and COVID-19 knowledge. Sources of health-related information were categorized into 4 types: mass media, digital media, social media, and face-to-face communication. The Spearman rank correlation test was conducted to determine the relationship between health literacy, the number of correct answers to COVID-19 knowledge, and the number of information sources used. Multiple regression analysis was conducted with health literacy and the number of correct answers as dependent variables, the 4 media types as independent variables, and age and sex as adjustment variables. Results Mass media was the most frequently used source of information, followed by digital media, face-to-face communication, and social media. Social media use was significantly higher among individuals aged 20-29 years than among other age groups. Significant positive correlations were found between health literacy, the number of positive responses to COVID-19 knowledge, and the number of information sources used. Multiple linear regression analysis showed that health literacy is associated with access to information from digital media and face-to-face communication. Additionally, COVID-19 knowledge was associated with access to information from mass media, digital media, and face-to-face communication. Conclusions Health literacy and COVID-19 knowledge could be improved using diverse information sources, especially by providing opportunities to use digital media and face-to-face communication. Furthermore, it may be important to improve health literacy and provide accurate knowledge about COVID-19 to young adults.

Do Health Information Sources Influence Health Literacy among Older Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study in the Urban Areas of Western China

“…Most of the people could benefit from the number of information sources used [ 39 , 40 , 41 ] when finding health information and making health decisions. Moreover, access to information from interpersonal communication [ 42 ] and mass communication [ 43 , 44 ] can contribute to improving health literacy. Our current study tries to confirm this view, and determine whether health information sources could influence health literacy among older adults in the urban areas of Western China.…”

The Effect of Social Media on Preventive Behavioural Intention During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Mediating Roles of Interpersonal Communication, Social Media Expression and Knowledge

“…In the context of infectious disease outbreaks, these reasoning processes may enhance individuals' disease knowledge and improve recognition of symptoms, understanding of the causes and perception of disease risks. Supporting this suggestion, previous research on the COVID-19 pandemic found that interpersonal communication was effective in improving knowledge about the pandemic (Ezeah et al, 2020;Inoue et al, 2022). A study of MERS revealed that the more people expressed MERS-related information on social media, the more they perceived that they were fully informed about MERS (Yoo et al, 2016).…”

The Relationship Between Health Literacy, Knowledge, Fear, and COVID-19 Prevention Behavior in Different Age Groups: Cross-sectional Web-Based Study

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