Table 1.
Dependent and independent variables and definitions
| Measure | Number of items | Definitions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Online diabetes information-seeking behavior: Endorsed statements about having online interactions to access, transmit, or receive diabetes information in the past 12 months | |||
| Online diabetes-related information-seeking behavior (Online DISB) | 3 | Participants participated in an online support group for people with diabetes, used email or the Internet to communicate with the diabetes physician, and used the Internet to look up information regarding diabetes and its care | |
| e-Health literacy: Extent of perceived self-confidence at finding, evaluating, and applying online health information | |||
| eHEALS | 8 | Know how to find health resources on the Internet, how to use the Internet to answer questions, be familiar with available health resources on the Internet, where to find health resources on the Internet, how to use the health information found, have the skills to evaluate the resources found, can tell high-quality from low-quality resources, and feel confident in using information from the Internet for decisions | |
| Patient-physician communication: Experiences with their physician in the diabetes clinic in the past 12 months | |||
| Hurried communication | 5 | Physician spoke in hurried manner, used difficult-to-understand words, appeared distracted, ignored what patient said, irritated by patient's questions | |
| Elicited concerns, responded | 3 | Physician asked about patient’s concerns, let patient say what they thought was important, took worries about sickness seriously | |
| Explained results, medications | 4 | Physician explained results of tests and physical exam, explained what would happen if patient does not take a prescribed medicine, and explained possible side effects from a medicine | |
| Self-care behaviors: Extent of current practice in diabetes self-care over the previous 1–2 months | |||
| Diet | 4 | Eat the correct portions, eat meals/snacks on time, keep food records, read food labels | |
| Glucose self-monitoring | 2 | Check blood glucose with monitor, record blood glucose results | |
| Medication administration | 3 | Take the correct dose, take pills or insulin at the right time, adjust insulin dosage | |
| Exercise | 1 | Do physical activity and exercise | |
| Low glucose levels | 2 | Treat low blood glucose, carry quick acting sugar | |
| Preventative/ routine aspects of care | 3 | Come in for clinic appointments, carry a diabetes ID card, check ketones | |
| Medication adherence: Endorsed statements about taking diabetes medications | |||
| Adherence to diabetes medications (pills and insulin) | 8 | Forgot/did not take diabetes medications, cut down/stopped taking medications because felt worse, forgot to take diabetes medications along when traveling, stopped taking diabetes medications because blood sugar is under control, felt hassled about diabetes treatment plan | |