Table 2.
Characteristics of Seekers and Nonseekers of Online Health Information.
| Variable | Seekers of online health information, N (%) | Nonseekers of online health information, N (%) | p |
|---|---|---|---|
| Demographics | |||
| Gender | |||
| Male (n = 670) | 415 (49.17) | 255 (57.3) | .01* |
| Female (n = 619) | 429 (50.80) | 190 (42.7) | |
| Age (n = 1,289)a | 52.82 (15.04) | 62.94 (14.63) | .01** |
| Education | |||
| High school and below (n = 517) | 258 (30.6) | 259 (58.6) | .01** |
| Technical school (n = 305) | 208 (24.7) | 97 (21.9) | |
| University and above (n = 463) | 377 (44.7) | 86 (19.5) | |
| Household income | |||
| ≥$52,000 (n = 529) | 397 (68.6) | 132 (49.6) | .01** |
| <$52,000 (n = 316) | 182 (31.4) | 134 (50.4) | |
| Marital status | |||
| Married/de facto (n = 939) | 628 (74.8) | 311 (70.0) | .07 |
| Other (n = 345) | 212 (25.2) | 133 (30.0) | |
| Geographical location | |||
| Major city (n = 671) | 446 (53.3) | 225 (50.90) | .49 |
| Nonmajor city (n = 605) | 391 (46.7) | 214 (48.42) | |
| Health behaviors | |||
| Physical activity | |||
| Sufficiently active for health (n = 703) | 475 (64.5) | 228 (66.9) | .46 |
| Insufficiently active for health (n = 374) | 261 (35.5) | 113 (33.1) | |
| Fruit intake | |||
| Sufficient fruit intake (n = 763) | 514 (60.90) | 249 (55.60) | .09 |
| Insufficient fruit intake (n = 526) | 330 (39.10) | 196 (44.04) | |
| Vegetable intake | |||
| Sufficient vegetable intake (n = 232) | 150 (17.79) | 82 (18.43) | .78 |
| Insufficient vegetable intake (n = 1,056) | 693 (82.21) | 363 (81.57) | |
| Sitting hours | |||
| ≤8 hours (n = 743) | 476 (62.47) | 267 (70.82) | |
| >8 hours (n = 396) | 286 (37.53) | 110 (29.18) | .01** |
| Smoking status | |||
| Non–current smoker (n = 1,145) | 766 (90.87) | 379 (85.17) | .01** |
| Current smoker (n = 143) | 77 (9.13) | 66 (14.83) | |
| Alcohol intake | |||
| Nonmisuse of alcohol (n = 732) | 480 (56.87) | 252 (56.63) | .93 |
| Misuse of alcohol (n = 557) | 364 (43.13) | 193 (43.37) | |
| Health | |||
| Health status | |||
| Excellent/very good/good (n = 1,041) | 692 (81.99) | 349 (78.43) | .12 |
| Fair/poor (n = 248) | 152 (18.01) | 96 (21.57) | |
| Comorbidity | |||
| 0 Chronic illnesses (n = 570) | 388 (45.97) | 182 (40.90) | .05* |
| 1 Chronic illness (n = 376) | 252 (29.86) | 124 (27.87) | |
| 2 Chronic illnesses (n = 206) | 128 (15.17) | 78 (17.53) | |
| ≥3 Chronic illnesses (n = 137) | 76 (0.09) | 61 (13.71) | |
| BMIa | 27.68 (6.07) | 27.57 (6.24) | .76 |
| Internet | |||
| Social media use | |||
| User of social media (n = 664) | 550 (65.24) | 114 (30.65) | .01** |
| Nonuser of social media (n = 551) | 293 (34.76) | 258 (69.35) | |
Note. BMI = body mass index.
a
M (SD).
*
p ≤ .05. **p ≤ .01.