Table 4.
DHL regarding the frequency of use, perceived importance, and information satisfaction.
| Information Seeking | Evaluation Information Reliability | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Item | Limited, Mean (SD) | Sufficient, Mean (SD) | p | d | Limited, Mean (SD) | Sufficient, Mean (SD) | p | d |
| Internet sources | ||||||||
| Search engines (e.g., Google, Bing, Yahoo!). | 3.40 (0.81) | 3.47 (0.79) | 0.017 | 0.09 | 3.41 (0.80) | 3.44 (0.79) | 0.228 | NA |
| Web sites of public bodies (NIJZ, Slovenian Ministry of Health, Slovenian Government). | 2.95 (0.95) | 3.05 (0.97) | 0.008 | 0.10 | 2.88 (0.97) | 3.10 (0.92) | <0.001 | 0.24 |
| Wikipedia and other web-based encyclopaedias. | 1.82 (0.92) | 1.96 (1.02) | <0.001 | 0.15 | 1.77 (0.92) | 1.99 (0.99) | <0.001 | 0.23 |
| Social media (e.g., Facebook, Instagram, Twitter). | 2.26 (1.06) | 2.08 (1.07) | <0.001 | −0.16 | 2.32 (1.07) | 2.05 (1.04) | <0.001 | −0.25 |
| YouTube. | 1.78 (0.95) | 1.81 (0.97) | 0.443 | NA | 1.76 (0.97) | 1.82 (0.94) | 0.101 | NA |
| Blogs on health topics. | 1.43 (0.71) | 1.37 (0.68) | 0.014 | −0.09 | 1.46 (0.74) | 1.36 (0.66) | <0.001 | −0.14 |
| Web counselling services (med.over.net). | 1.31 (0.61) | 1.25 (0.57) | 0.016 | −0.09 | 1.31 (0.62) | 1.26 (0.58) | 0.017 | −0.09 |
| Health portals (vizita.si, Zdravo.si). | 1.61 (0.80) | 1.51 (0.76) | 0.001 | −0.13 | 1.61 (0.81) | 1.54 (0.77) | 0.011 | −0.09 |
| Websites of physicians or health insurance companies. | 1.50 (0.78) | 1.51 (0.83) | 0.734 | NA | 1.47 (0.76) | 1.55 (0.83) | 0.008 | 0.10 |
| News portals (e.g., newspapers, TV stations). | 2.90 (0.98) | 2.92 (1.02) | 0.505 | NA | 2.90 (0.97) | 2.91 (1.02) | 0.854 | NA |
| Importance | ||||||||
| information is up to date | 3.83 (0.42) | 3.89 (0.34) | <0.001 | 0.14 | 3.83 (0.41) | 3.89 (0.36) | <0.001 | 0.15 |
| information is verified | 3.92 (0.31) | 3.95 (0.23) | 0.019 | 0.09 | 3.93 (0.30) | 3.94 (0.25) | 0.166 | NA |
| you learn the most important things quickly | 3.53 (0.6) | 3.53 (0.59) | 0.989 | NA | 3.52 (0.61) | 3.53 (0.59) | 0.753 | NA |
| the information comes from official sources | 3.70 (0.58) | 3.73 (0.56) | 0.288 | NA | 3.70 (0.59) | 3.73 (0.55) | 0.078 | NA |
| different opinions are presented | 3.23 (0.77) | 3.16 (0.80) | 0.018 | −0.09 | 3.26 (0.75) | 3.14 (0.81) | <0.001 | −0.15 |
| the topic is addressed comprehensively | 3.60 (0.60) | 3.66 (0.57) | 0.018 | 0.09 | 3.61 (0.59) | 3.63 (0.58) | 0.481 | NA |
| Satisfaction | 3.10 (0.76) | 3.48 (0.83) | <0.001 | 0.48 | 3.06 (0.79) | 3.42 (0.79) | <0.001 | 0.46 |
Note: Relevant effect sizes are highlighted in bold. NA, not applicable; SD, standard deviation; p, significance level; d, Cohen’s d coefficient.