Digital divide among people with disabilities: Analysis of data from a nationwide study for determinants of Internet use and activities performed online

There is no author summary for this article yet. Authors can add summaries to their articles on ScienceOpen to make them more accessible to a non-specialist audience.

Abstract

Introduction

The Internet is both an opportunity as well as a challenge for people with disabilities. However, this segment of the population is usually indicated among social groups experiencing digital divide. The study is focused on the analysis of factors determining Internet usage and undertaking specific activities online among people with disabilities based on a nationwide study performed in 2013 in Poland.

Methods

Secondary analysis was performed on the data of persons who declared disability status in 2013 “Social Diagnosis” study. Multivariate logistic regression models were developed for the use of the Internet and performing three types of activities online.

Results

Among 3,556 respondents with disability 51.02% were females, 25.19% 65 years of age and over and 33.05% were Internet users. The predictors of Internet usage included the degree of disability, place of residence, level of education, marital status, occupational status, net income, use of health care service and the use of mobile phone. The odds ratio that a person with disability belonging to the oldest category will use the Internet was only 0.04 (95% CI 0.02–0.09), when compared to the youngest category. The odds that a person with disability from the highest category of education will use the Internet were 18 times higher than in the case of persons with only basic education (OR 18.17, 95% CI 11.70–28.21). Common predictors of online activities (accessing websites of public institutions, checking and sending emails, publishing own content on the Internet) included age category and net income.

Conclusions

People with disabilities in Poland are facing a significant digital divide. The factors determining the use of the Internet in this group are similar to those of the general population. On the other hand, people with disabilities who are active online, access diversified types of services including presentation of their own content online.

Related collections

Most cited references 20

Record: found
Abstract: found
Article: found

Is Open Access

Using the Internet for Health-Related Activities: Findings From a National Probability Sample

Nancy Atkinson, Sandra L Saperstein, John Pleis (2009)

Background eHealth tools on the Internet have the potential to help people manage their health and health care. However, little is known about the distribution and use of different kinds of eHealth tools across the population or within population subgroups. Objective The purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence and predictors of participation in specific online health-related activities. Methods A secondary data analysis of the National Cancer Institute’s Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS) 2005 was conducted to study three online behaviors among Internet users (n = 3244): searching for health information for oneself, participating in a support group for those with similar health or medical conditions, and purchasing medicine or vitamins. Results A total of 58% of Internet users reported searching for health information for themselves, 3.8% used online support groups, and 12.8% bought medicine or vitamins online in the past year. Multivariate analysis found that those seeking health information were more likely to be women (OR = 2.23, 95% CI = 1.60, 3.09), have cable or satellite Internet connections (OR = 1.73, 95% CI = 1.22, 2.45) or DSL connections (OR = 1.94, 95% CI = 1.36, 2.76), have Internet access from work (OR = 2.43, 95% CI = 1.27, 4.67) or from home and work (OR = 1.73, 95% CI = 1.31, 2.30), and report more hours of weekday Internet use (OR = 4.12, 95% CI = 2.41, 7.07). Those with a high school education or less (OR = 0.44, 95% CI = 0.31, 0.63) and those with some college (OR = 0.66, 95% CI = 0.49, 0.89) were less likely to search for health information. Online support groups were more likely to be used by those with “fair” health (OR = 3.28, 95% CI = 1.21, 8.92) and “poor” health (OR = 5.98, 95% CI = 1.49, 24.07) and those with lower incomes (OR = 2.64, 95% CI = 1.09, 6.41) and less likely to be used by those with Internet access both at home and work (OR = 0.56, 95% CI = 0.35, 0.90). Those who were age 35-49 (OR = 2.16, 95% CI = 1.43, 3.26), age 50-64 (OR = 2.44, 95% CI = 1.53, 3.89), and age 65-74 (OR = 2.18, 95% CI = 1.30, 3.67) and those who were married (OR = 1.93, 95% CI = 1.13, 3.30) were more likely to purchase medicine or vitamins online. Conclusions The Internet was most widely used as a health information resource, with less participation in the purchase of medicine and vitamins and in online support groups. Results suggest that modifying survey questions to better capture forms of online support and medications purchased could provide greater understanding of the nature of participation in these activities.

0 comments Cited 172 times – based on 0 reviews      Review now

Bookmark

Record: found
Abstract: found
Article: not found

Internet use by cancer survivors: current use and future wishes.

Lonneke V. van de Poll-Franse, Mies van Eenbergen (2008)

The objective of this study was to evaluate the extent of internet access and use and patient characteristics associated with internet use. We also aimed to study when and at which sites cancer patients search for information, the self-reported effect on health care use, and patients' wishes with respect to future internet possibilities. We drew a sample of 390 patients diagnosed with breast (n = 128), prostate (n = 96), or gynecological (n = 89) cancer or lymphoma (n = 77) in four different hospitals in the period 2002-2004, who were 65 years or younger at diagnosis. These patients were sent a questionnaire that contained 45 questions about demographics and three broad applications of internet use: content, communication, community. Of the 261 (75%) patients who responded, 60% used Internet by themselves, 9% via others, whereas 31% did not use the Internet. High education, young age, and high socio-economic status were all independently positively associated with internet use. Of the patients with complaints but pre-diagnosis, 41% searched the Internet for information about cancer daily to several times a week. After diagnosis, during treatment, and at follow-up, this was, respectively, 71%, 56%, and 4%. Although patients preferred to get reliable information from the Web site of their oncologist (88%), hospital (70%) or Dutch Cancer Society (76%), Web sites that are completely financed and created by pharmaceutical industries were mentioned most as source of information. Patients who used the Internet to find information about cancer felt themselves to be better informed about their disease (72%); only 3% thought that consulting the Internet increased the frequency of visiting their doctor, whereas 20% felt that information from the Internet influenced the treatment decision made by their doctor. Most patients who use the Internet would like to be able to access their own medical file (79%) or test results (81%) if possible. Many cancer patients use the Internet to find reliable information about their disease and treatment. Patient information centers from hospitals should be strongly encouraged to improve disease and treatment information facilities on their hospital Web site, especially since most patients view their oncologist still as the most important source of information.

0 comments Cited 48 times – based on 0 reviews      Review now

Bookmark

Record: found
Abstract: found
Article: found

Is Open Access

Surfing the internet for health information: an italian survey on use and population choices

Roberta Siliquini, Michele Ceruti, Emanuela Lovato … (2011)

Background Recent international sources have described how the rapid expansion of the Internet has precipitated an increase in its use by the general population to search for medical information. Most studies on e-health use investigated either through the prevalence of such use and the social and income patterns of users in selected populations, or the psychological consequences and satisfaction experienced by patients with particular diseases. Few studies have been carried out in Europe that have tried to identify the behavioral consequences of Internet use for health-related purposes in the general population. The aims of this study are to provide information about the prevalence of Internet use for health-related purposes in Italy according to demographic and socio-cultural features, to investigate the impact of the information found on health-related behaviors and choices and to analyze any differences based on health condition, self-rated health and relationships with health professionals and facilities. Methods A multicenter survey was designed within six representative Italian cities. Data were collected through a validated questionnaire administered in hospital laboratories by physicians. Respondents were questioned about their generic condition, their use of the Internet and their health behaviors and choices related to Internet use. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and logistic regression to assess any differences by socio-demographic and health-related variables. Results The sample included 3018 individuals between the ages of 18 and 65 years. Approximately 65% of respondents reported using the Internet, and 57% of them reported using it to search for health-related information. The main reasons for search on the Internet were faster access and a greater amount of information. People using the Internet more for health-related purposes were younger, female and affected by chronic diseases. Conclusions A large number of Internet users search for health information and subsequently modify their health behaviors and relationships with their medical providers. This may suggest a strong public health impact with consequences in all European countries, and it would be prudent to plan educational and prevention programs. However, it could be important to investigate the quality of health-related websites to protect and inform users.

0 comments Cited 48 times – based on 0 reviews      Review now

Bookmark

All references

Author and article information

Contributors

Yih-Kuen Jan: Role: Editor

Journal

Journal ID (nlm-ta): PLoS One

Journal ID (iso-abbrev): PLoS ONE

Journal ID (publisher-id): plos

Journal ID (pmc): plosone

Title: PLoS ONE

Publisher: Public Library of Science (San Francisco, CA USA )

ISSN (Electronic): 1932-6203

Publication date (Electronic): 29 June 2017

Publication date Collection: 2017

Volume: 12

Issue: 6

Electronic Location Identifier: e0179825

Affiliations

[001]Department of Health Promotion, Institute of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Krakow, Poland

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, UNITED STATES

Author notes

Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Conceptualization: MD.
Data curation: MD.
Formal analysis: MD.
Funding acquisition: MD.
Investigation: MD.
Methodology: MD.
Project administration: MD.
Visualization: MD.
Writing – original draft: MD.
Writing – review & editing: MD.

* E-mail: mmduplag@ 123456cyfronet.pl

Author information

Mariusz Duplaga http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6963-8414

Article

Publisher ID: PONE-D-16-43359

DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0179825

PMC ID: 5491040

PubMed ID: 28662125

SO-VID: 5cdbfede-2573-4b13-a795-e3cd186d6415

License:

This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

History

Date received : 31 October 2016

Date accepted : 5 June 2017

Page count

Figures: 0, Tables: 3, Pages: 19

Funding

Funded by: Uniwersytet Jagielloński Collegium Medicum (PL)

Award ID: K/ZDS/006112

Award Recipient :

ORCID: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6963-8414

Mariusz Duplaga

The study was performed in the framework of statutory project No K/ZDS/006112 carried out in the Department of Health Promotion, Institute of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Kraków, Poland. The funder had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

Custom metadata

Data Availability All relevant data are within the paper and its Supporting Information files.

Digital divide among people with disabilities: Analysis of data from a nationwide study for determinants of Internet use and activities performed online

Read this article at

Abstract

Introduction

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Related collections

PLOS Climate

Most cited references 20

Using the Internet for Health-Related Activities: Findings From a National Probability Sample

Internet use by cancer survivors: current use and future wishes.

Surfing the internet for health information: an italian survey on use and population choices

Author and article information

Contributors

Journal

Affiliations

Author notes

Author information

Article

History

Page count

Funding

Categories

Custom metadata

Comments

Comment on this article

Similar content 105

Cited by 26

Most referenced authors 199