Professional Documents
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Enwald - Everyday
Enwald - Everyday
Heidi Enwald
Information Studies, Faculty of Humanities, University of Oulu; Medical Research Center Oulu, Oulu University Hospital; and University of Oulu,
Finland
Noora Hirvonen
Information Studies, Faculty of Humanities, University of Oulu; Medical Research Center Oulu, Oulu University Hospital and University of Oulu, Finland
Maija-Leena Huotari
Information Studies, Faculty of Humanities, University of Oulu; Medical Research Center Oulu, Oulu University Hospital and University of Oulu, Finland
Raija Korpelainen
Center for Life Course Epidemiology and Systems Medicine, University of Oulu; Oulu Deaconess Institute; Medical Research Center Oulu, Oulu
University Hospital and University of Oulu, Finland
Riitta Pyky
Center for Life Course Epidemiology and Systems Medicine, University of Oulu; Oulu Deaconess Institute; Medical Research Center Oulu, Oulu
University Hospital and University of Oulu, Finland
Markku Savolainen
Department of Internal Medicine, Oulu University Hospital and University of Oulu; Medical Research Center Oulu, Oulu University Hospital and
University of Oulu, Finland
Tuire Salonurmi
Department of Internal Medicine, Oulu University Hospital and University of Oulu; Medical Research Center Oulu, Oulu University Hospital and
University of Oulu, Finland
Anna-Maria Keränen
Department of Internal Medicine, Oulu University Hospital and University of Oulu; Medical Research Center Oulu, Oulu University Hospital and
University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
Terhi Jokelainen
Department of Internal Medicine, Oulu University Hospital and University of Oulu; Medical Research Center Oulu, Oulu University Hospital and
University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
Raimo Niemelä
Kastelli Upper Secondary School, The City of Oulu Department of Education, Finland
Corresponding author:
Maija-Leena Huotari, Information Studies, Faculty of Humanities, PO Box 1000, 90014 University of Oulu, Finland.
Email: maija-leena.huotari@oulu.fi
Abstract
This cross-sectional population-based study aims at identifying differences in the aspects of everyday health information literacy among
young healthy men and adults with an increased risk for metabolic syndrome. Data were collected with a self-assessment-based 10-
item screening tool administered at the Finnish Defence Force’s call-ups (n=2507, response rate 59%) and at health intervention study
(n=571, response rate 98%). Adults with increased risk for metabolic syndrome seemed to value health information but had more dif-
ficulty in knowing who to believe in health issues and understanding the terminology used. The difficulties applied especially to respon-
dents 35 years old or over. Men, and especially young men, had lower motivation than women to seek health information. Although
the results are indicative, the everyday health information literacy screening tool seems to be useful in revealing areas that health com-
munication should be focused on among different populations.
Keywords
Age; Finland; gender; health information literacy; health promotion; motivation
1. Introduction
The competencies that people possess with regard to finding, evaluating and using health information may influence
their information behaviour [1]. The concept of health information literacy (HIL) has been used to describe these compe-
tencies. It has been defined as ‘the set of abilities needed to recognize a health information need, identify likely informa-
tion sources and use them to retrieve relevant information, assess the quality of the information and its applicability to a
specific situation, and analyse, understand, and use the information to make good health decisions’ [2]. The concept of
everyday health information literacy (EHIL) refers to competencies to find, evaluate and understand health-related infor-
mation in everyday life situations, and is directed especially towards literate populations [3]. It can be considered as
information literacy in a health context or as a combination of the concepts of health literacy (HL) and information
literacy.
Research on HIL has focused on different population subgroups and these studies (further discussed in Section 1.1.)
indicate that there are significant differences in HIL based on individuals’ age, education, economical situation and health
status. However, research within this area is still scarce. It has been proposed that HIL should be studied among various
populations and that different aspects of health information literacy (e.g. motivation, skills, confidence) should be investi-
gated separately but in parallel [3]. This study responds to this demand by comparing the different aspects of HIL among
two population subgroups: generally healthy young men and adults with an increased risk for metabolic syndrome. Both
populations have characteristics that make health promotion important to them.
Journal of Information Science, 2016, pp. 1–11 Ó The Author(s), DOI: 10.1177/0165551516628449
Research on HIL has mainly focused on health professionals and the roles of libraries and librarians in the promo-
tion of HIL [15, 16]. In everyday life settings HIL has been studied among upper secondary school students [3],
young men [1], adults attempting to manage their weight [17] and older adults [18–21]. These studies indicate that
there are significant differences in HIL based on individuals’ age, education, economical situation and health status.
For example, high educational level (seniors [19], young men [10], university students [22]) and female gender
(upper secondary school student [3]) have been found to be associated with higher HIL. HIL has also been positively
associated with self-rated health among older people (aged 65–79) [19] and health-promoting behaviours and physi-
cal fitness among young men (aged 17–23) [23]. Moreover, among young men, low EHIL has been associated with
avoidance of physical activity information [1] and non-preference of fear appeals [24]. These results indicate that
individuals who are unconfident in their abilities to find, understand and use health-related information may be more
prone to avoid this information.
In this study, we focus on comparing the different aspects of HIL among two population subgroups: generally healthy
young men and adults with an increased risk for metabolic syndrome. The metabolic syndrome is a cluster of the most
dangerous heart attack risk factors: diabetes and prediabetes, abdominal obesity, high cholesterol and high blood pres-
sure [25].
Metabolic syndrome has been defined as a combination of abdominal obesity and two of the other listed risk factors:
raised triglycerides, reduced HDL cholesterol, raised blood pressure and raised fasting plasma glucose or diagnosed type
2 diabetes. Individuals’ knowledge, attitudes and behaviour play a large role in preventing and managing the risk factors
making up metabolic syndrome and many lifestyle interventions are based on this understanding [26]. Individuals with a
high risk for metabolic syndrome should be aware of and informed about their situation as there are good possibilities to
promote their wellbeing and prevent the onset of diseases such as type 2 diabetes.
Young men represent a generally healthy population but may engage in risky behaviours, physical inactivity and
unhealthy dietary habits, placing them at risk of acute and chronic health conditions in the future (see e.g. [27]).
Increased age is associated with more protective health behaviours [28]. Elderly people are generally regarded having
higher health consciousness [29]. Young people, in turn, may be rather confident in their abilities to find and use health-
related information but may lack motivation to seek for information on health [1]. Furthermore, women have been
shown to be more proactive and engaged in seeking, gaining and discussing health-related issues (e.g. [30–32]). Yet gen-
der differences tend to decrease as age increases [28].
1.2. Objectives
The aim of this study is to increase our knowledge of EHIL among different kinds of individuals. The objective of this
population-based study is to compare different aspects of EHIL (i.e. motivation, confidence, evaluation and terminology)
between adults with increased risk for metabolic syndrome (aged 20–61) and healthy young men (aged 17–23). This
knowledge can be utilized in tailoring health communication for these target groups. The association of gender and age
are further investigated by comparing (a) men and women and (b) men who were under 35 years old with men who were
35 or older in the population subgroup of adults with increased risk for metabolic syndrome. The study also contributes
to the validation of the EHIL screening tool.
The research questions were set as follows:
(1) Are there significant differences between the two populations in the total scores or item-based scores of the
EHIL screening tool?
(2) Are there significant differences in the EHIL between genders or different age groups among adults with
increased risk for metabolic syndrome?
2. Methods
2.1. Survey design
The EHIL screening tool by Niemelä et al. [3] includes 10 statements to which individuals are instructed to respond on a
scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree). The statements are:
Journal of Information Science, 2016, pp. 1–11 Ó The Author(s), DOI: 10.1177/0165551516628449
(4) It is difficult to find health information from printed sources (magazines and books).
(5) It is difficult to find health information from the Internet.
(6) It is easy to assess the reliability of health information in printed sources (magazines and books).
(7) It is easy to assess the reliability of health information on the Internet.
(8) Health-related terminology and statements are often difficult to understand.
(9) I apply health-related information to my own life and/or that of people close to me.
(10) It is difficult to know who to believe in health issues.
There are some limitations relating to this data collection methodology. When data is collected at a single point in
time, changes in the population cannot be measured. Furthermore, surveys generally cannot provide strong evidence of
cause and effect. Without this temporal association there is lack of proof about the causality.
Journal of Information Science, 2016, pp. 1–11 Ó The Author(s), DOI: 10.1177/0165551516628449
Table 1. The number and percentages of the population-based samples and EHIL respondents included in this study.
3. Results
3.1. Characteristics of the study participants
The mean age of the young men was 17.9 years (standard deviation 0.688) and the mean age of the adults with increased
risk for metabolic syndrome was 45.8 (standard deviation 9.979, aged 20–61 years). Approximately half of respondents
with increased risk for metabolic syndrome were men (n=283) and half were women (n=271). Information about the
gender and age were missing from some of the respondents. Of the young men 8.2% (n=137) and of the high-risk indi-
viduals, 4.1% (n=23) reported an expert diagnosis of dyslexia.
3.2.1. Motivation. Of the young men 62.5% (n=926) and of the individuals with high risk for metabolic syndrome 96.1%
(n=538) thought that it is important to be informed about health issues. Of the young men 38.4% (n=563) agreed that
they like to get health information from a variety of sources and 35.5% (n=525) that they apply health information to
their own lives and/or the lives of people close to them, whereas these proportions among the adults with increased risk
were 86.8% (n=485) and 70.4% (n=396), respectively. Of the adults with increased risk 89.3% (n=500) and of the young
men 70.4% (n=1042) were confident in their ability to know where to seek information (see Table 2).
Journal of Information Science, 2016, pp. 1–11 Ó The Author(s), DOI: 10.1177/0165551516628449
Table 2. An item-based comparison of EHIL statements among young generally healthy men (n=1481) and adults with increased risk
for metabolic syndrome (n=559).
Motivation
It is important to be informed about health issues (EHIL 1) 926 (62.5) 538 (96.1)*
I know where to seek health information (EHIL 2) 1042 (70.4) 500 (89.3)*
I like to get health information from a variety of sources (EHIL 3) 563 (38.4) 485 (86.8)*
I apply health-related information to my own life and/or that of people close to 525 (35.5) 396 (70.8)*
me (EHIL 9)
Confidence
It is difficult to find health information from printed sources (magazines and 251 (16.9) 103 (18.4)
books) (EHIL 4)
It is difficult to find health information from the Internet (EHIL 5) 192 (13.0) 79 (14.1)
It is difficult to know who to believe on health issues (EHIL 10) 195 (13.2) 253 (45.2)*
Evaluation
It is easy to assess the reliability of health information in printed sources 493 (33.5) 195 (34.8)
(magazines and books) (EHIL 6)
It is easy to assess the reliability of health information on the Internet (EHIL 7) 461 (31.3) 172 (30.7)
Terminology
Health-related terminology and statements are often difficult to understand 237 (16.0) 225 (40.2)*
(EHIL 8)
*Statistically significant difference between the young men and adults with increased risk for metabolic syndrome (Pearson’s chi-square or Fisher’s
exact test p < 0.05).
3.2.2. Confidence. Of the young men 16.9% (n=251) and of the adults with increased risk for metabolic syndrome 18.4%
(n=103) agreed with the statement concerning the difficulty of finding health information from printed sources, and
13.0% (n=192) of young men and 14.1% (n=79) of high-risk individuals agreed with the statement relating the Internet.
Of young men 13.2% (n=195) agreed with the statement ‘it is difficult to know who to believe in health issues’ while
the proportion was 45.2% (n=253) for the adults with increased risk.
3.2.3. Evaluation. Over one-third of both young men (33.8%, n=493) and of adults with increased risk (34.8%, n=195)
agreed that it is easy to assess the reliability of health information in printed sources. The percentages relating to the
easiness of assessing the reliability of health information on the Internet were 31.3% (n=461) for young men and 30.7%
(n=172) for the adults with increased risk.
3.2.4. Terminology. Of the young men 16.0% agreed that health-related terminology and statements are often difficult to
understand, whereas 40.2% of the high-risk individuals had experienced these difficulties. We were interested in finding
out whether there is a difference between genders. Therefore the women and men with increased risk for metabolic syn-
drome were further investigated. An EHIL item-based comparison of high-risk women and men is presented in Table 3.
Of the adults with high risk for metabolic syndrome, both men and women aged from 35 to 61 years were more likely
to find it difficult to know who to believe in health issues (p=0.027), to assess the reliability of health information in
printed sources (p < 0.001), and to understand health-related terminology (p < 0.001) when compared with men and
women from aged 20 to 34.
When high-risk men under the age of 35 were compared with men of the age of 35 or older statistically significant dif-
ferences applied to the statements ‘it is easy to assess the reliability of health information in printed sources (magazines
and books)’ (p=0.023) and to ‘health-related terminology and statements are often difficult to understand’ (p=0.003).
Of the women in the population of the adults with increased risk for metabolic syndrome, 94.1% (n=255) agreed that
they know where to seek health information and 92.6 (n=251) preferred getting health information from a variety of
sources. The percentages for men were 84.5 (n=238) (p < 0.001) and 81.2 (n=228) (p < 0.001), respectively. Of women,
76.7% (n=207) agreed with the statement ‘I apply health-related information to my own life and/or that of people close
to me’ and of men 65.4% (n=185) (p=0.004). A comparison of EHIL item scores of high-risk men aged from 20 to 34
and from 35 to 61 is presented in Table 4.
Journal of Information Science, 2016, pp. 1–11 Ó The Author(s), DOI: 10.1177/0165551516628449
Table 3. EHIL item-based comparison of high-risk women (n=282) and men (n=289) of all ages with increased risk for metabolic
syndrome.
Motivation
It is important to be informed about health issues (EHIL 1) 264 (97.3) 267 (94.7)
I know where to seek health information (EHIL 2) 255 (94.1) 238 (84.5)*
I like to get health information from a variety of sources (EHIL 3) 251 (92.6) 228 (81.2)*
I apply health-related information to my own life and/or that of people close 207 (76.7) 185 (65.4)*
to me (EHIL 9)
Confidence
It is difficult to find health information from printed sources (magazines and 48 (17.7) 52 (18.4)
books) (EHIL 4)
It is difficult to find health information from the Internet (EHIL 5) 40 (14.7) 34 (12.4)
It is difficult to know who to believe in health issues (EHIL 10) 134 (49.4) 117 (41.3)
Evaluation
It is easy to assess the reliability of health information in printed sources 94 (34.7) 98 (34.6)
(magazines and books) (EHIL 6)
It is easy to assess the reliability of health information on the Internet (EHIL 7) 85 (31.4) 84 (29.7)
Terminology
Health-related terminology and statements are often difficult to understand 107 (39.5) 114 (40.3)
(EHIL 8)
*Statistically significant difference between women and men with increased risk for metabolic syndrome (Pearson’s chi-square or Fisher’s exact test
p < 0.05).
Table 4. EHIL item-based comparison of men under 35 years (n=51) and men 35 or older (n=230) with increased risk for metabolic
syndrome.
Motivation
It is important to be informed about health issues (EHIL 1) 46 (90.2) 220 (95.7)
I know where to seek health information (EHIL 2) 42 (82.4) 195 (84.8)
I like to get health information from a variety of sources (EHIL 3) 38 (74.5) 189 (82.5)
I apply health-related information to my own life and/or that of people close to 33 (64.7) 151 (65.7)
me (EHIL 9)
Confidence
It is difficult to find health information from printed sources (magazines and 7 (13.7) 45 (19.6)
books) (EHIL 4)
It is difficult to find health information from the Internet (EHIL 5) 7 (13.7) 27 (11.7)
It is difficult to know who to believe in health issues (EHIL 10) 15 (29.4) 101 (43.9)
Evaluation
It is easy to assess the reliability of health information in printed sources 25 (49.0) 73 (31.7)*
(magazines and books) (EHIL 6)
It is easy to assess the reliability of health information on the Internet (EHIL 7) 15 (29.4) 68 (29.6)
Terminology
Health-related terminology and statements are often difficult to understand 11 (21.6) 103 (44.8)*
(EHIL 8)
*Statistically significant difference between men under 35 years and men 35 or older participating PrevMetSyn study (Pearson’s chi-square or Fisher’s
exact test p < 0.05).
4. Discussion
This study focuses on comparing adults with an increased risk for metabolic syndrome (aged from 20 to 61 years) to
healthy young men (aged from 17 to 23 years) in the total scores and item-based scores of the EHIL screening tool. The
main results of the comparison are discussed in this section.
The sum variable mean of the EHIL screening tool for young men was lower than for adults with increased risk for
metabolic syndrome. This finding is discussed later in this section.
Journal of Information Science, 2016, pp. 1–11 Ó The Author(s), DOI: 10.1177/0165551516628449
Journal of Information Science, 2016, pp. 1–11 Ó The Author(s), DOI: 10.1177/0165551516628449
perceived ability to assess the quality of health information. Applying the EHIL screening tool together with cognitive
behavioural therapy built up a novel counselling approach [45].
We argue that men, and especially younger men, need motivational health communication. Another option would be
to provide health information literacy assessment and feedback to reveal skill gaps [46] or help individuals evaluate their
competencies [47] in relation to specific tasks. The results imply that young men have high confidence in their EHIL
skills, but we could ponder whether this high confidence is actually connected with good skills. In fact, there is an
ongoing debate on whether health literacy represents a skill-based construct for health self-management, or if it also
more broadly captures personal activation or motivation to manage health [48]. However, both aspects are important
and they also make independent contributions to health [48]. In general, the EHIL screening tool may reflect confidence
rather than actual skills [1, 23].
The study has some limitations. Data for this study were collected at a single point in time and we were not able to
investigate changes in the populations or draw conclusions on cause and effect.The results indicate that the EHIL of
‘healthy’ and ‘unhealthy’ individuals’ differs, especially according to the different aspects of EHIL. This study provided
comparison with large population-based samples, but the results can be considered as indicative. They are not necessa-
rily generalizable to all ‘healthy’ and ‘unhealthy’ population groups. Therefore this difference should be further exam-
ined among different health subgroups and countries.
Moreover, future studies should focus on the further development and validation of the EHIL screening tool. Among
the study populations of this cross-sectional study, different aspects of EHIL and on how they are associated with health
behaviour and the physical health of individuals could be examined too. The EHIL screening tool should also be further
developed to better suite different population groups and their changing health information environments. Another
demand for developing the tool arises from the dramatic changes that have occurred in individuals’ information environ-
ment during recent years. The new challenges commenced by new technological tools and information practices have
been taken into account in a recently published Framework for Information Literacy for Higher Education by the
Association of College & Research Libraries [49]. This framework highlights the role of individuals’ understanding on
authority and information creation as key elements for information literacy. These perspectives could be taken into
account in studying EHIL as well.
In addition, the theoretical and practical development of the EHIL should take into account individuals’ personality
and information behaviour and their preferences. Furthermore, an instrument such as the self-perceived health-related
quality of life construct would be useful as support for the EHIL screening tool.
5. Conclusions
According to the results, different aspects of EHIL stand out for young healthy men and adults with increased risk for
metabolic syndrome. Young men seem to be rather confident in their competencies but may lack motivation to seek
health information. Adults with increased risk for metabolic syndrome seem to value health information but have more
difficulty in knowing who to believe in health issues and understanding the used terminology. Among adults (both men
and women) with increased risk for metabolic syndrome, those aged 35 years or older were more likely to find it diffi-
cult to know who to believe in health issues, assess the reliability of health information in printed sources and under-
stand health-related terminology than those under 35 years old. Furthermore, the results indicate that men in general,
and especially young men, have lower motivation than women to seek health information. Thus gender seems to be
associated with motivation as an EHIL factor. This finding is in line with previous research.
Found differences should be taken into account when designing health information literacy promotion, targeted health
communication strategies and intervention studies. The study also contributes to the validation of the EHIL screening
tool.
Future studies should focus on the different aspects of EHIL and how they are associated with health behaviour and
physical health of individuals. The EHIL screening tool seems to be useful in revealing areas on which health communi-
cation should be focused on among different populations. However, it could be further developed to better suit different
population groups and their changing health information environments.
Funding
MOPO study was financially supported by the Finnish Cultural Foundation, the Juho Vainio Foundation, the Ministry of Education
and Culture, the Centre for Military Medicine, the European Social Fund, the European Regional Development Fund, Tekes – The
Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation, and the Northern Ostrobothnia Hospital District. PrevMetSyn study has
Journal of Information Science, 2016, pp. 1–11 Ó The Author(s), DOI: 10.1177/0165551516628449
received financial support from the Academy of Finland, Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, Finnish Foundation for Cardiovascular
Research, Sigrid Juselius Foundation and City of Oulu.
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