Health information on the Internet and people living with HIV/AIDS: Information evaluation and coping styles.

[Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in Vol 26(5) of Health Psychology (see record 2007-13009-005). Table 1 mistakenly reported that the correlation between total Internet use and gender was r = .14, which, given the coding for gender, would be interpreted as women using the Internet more than men. However, as correctly stated in the text and indicated throughout the rest of the article, men used the Internet significantly more than women. The correct correlation between total Internet use and gender in Table 1 should therefore be r = .14.] Individuals who seek information on the Internet to cope with chronic illness may be vulnerable to misinformation and unfounded claims. This study examined the association between health-related coping and the evaluation of health information. Men (n = 347) and women (n = 72) who were living with HIV/AIDS and reported currently using the Internet completed measures assessing their Internet use. Health Web sites downloaded from the Internet were also rated for quality of information. HIV-positive adults commonly used the Internet to find health information (66%) and to learn about clinical trials (25%); they also talked to their physicians about information found online (24%). In a multivariate analysis, assigning higher credibility to unfounded Internet information was predicted by lower incomes, less education, and avoidant coping styles. People who cope by avoiding health information may be vulnerable to misinformation and unfounded claims that are commonly encountered on the Internet. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Health information on the Internet and people living with HIV/AIDS: Information evaluation and coping styles": Erratum.

[Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in Vol 26(6) of Health Psychology (see record 2007-16656-006). The Letters to the Editor "In Response to Kalichman et al. (2006)" by Joshua Fogel (Health Psychology, 2007, Vol. 26. No. 5, p.537) and "Error Noted in 'Health Information on the Internet and People Living With HIV/AIDS: Information Evaluation and Coping Styles'" by Seth C. Kalichman (Health Psychology, 2007, Vol. 26. No. 5, p.537) were printed with the same DOI. This is incorrect. The DOIs should be as follows: Joshua Fogel (2007): DOI: 10.1037/0278-6133.26.5.537a and Seth C. Kalichman (2007): DOI: 10.1037/0278-6133.26.5.537b.] Reports an error in "Health information on the Internet and people living with HIV/AIDS: Information evaluation and coping styles" by Seth C. Kalichman, Charsey Cherry, Demetria Cain, Lance S. Weinhardt, Eric Benotsch, Howard Pope and Moira Kalichman (Health Psychology, 2006[Mar], Vol 25[2], 205-210). Table 1 mistakenly reported that the correlation between total Internet use and gender was r = .14, which, given the coding for gender, would be interpreted as women using the Internet more than men. However, as correctly stated in the text and indicated throughout the rest of the article, men used the Internet significantly more than women. The correct correlation between total Internet use and gender in Table 1 should therefore be r = .14. (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 2006-03515-009.) Individuals who seek information on the Internet to cope with chronic illness may be vulnerable to misinformation and unfounded claims. This study examined the association between health-related coping and the evaluation of health information. Men (n = 347) and women (n = 72) who were living with HIV/AIDS and reported currently using the Internet completed measures assessing their Internet use. Health Web sites downloaded from the Internet were also rated for quality of information. HIV-positive adults commonly used the Internet to find health information (66%) and to learn about clinical trials (25%); they also talked to their physicians about information found online (24%). In a multivariate analysis, assigning higher credibility to unfounded Internet information was predicted by lower incomes, less education, and avoidant coping styles. People who cope by avoiding health information may be vulnerable to misinformation and unfounded claims that are commonly encountered on the Internet. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Health information on the Internet and people living with HIV/AIDS: Information evaluation and coping styles": Response.

Comments on the article by S. C. Kalichman et al. (see record 2006-03515-009) about Internet use and coping among those with HIV/AIDS in a mostly African American sample. Using correlation, Kalichman et al. concluded that African Americans correlated with less general and health-information Internet use than did Whites. Using regression, they concluded that African Americans, as compared with Whites, were more likely to consider as credible both scientifically and nonscientifically based website information. The current author contends that the employed analytic approach may not truly determine these results. It may be very useful to conduct and report these analyses using the nominal-level approach to determine if these results are true for African Americans. In addition, there may be a typographical error for the gender correlation results. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

对评估和利用互联网上专业技术信息资源的探讨

介绍了几种评估互联网上信息的方法和国外几个与粉末冶金行业相关的专业技术网站，对其特色和发展潜力进行了分析，并就行业网站建设等问题作了初步探讨。     

Information processing and negative affect: Evidence from the 2003 Health Information National Trends Survey.

Objective: Health communication can help reduce the cancer burden by increasing processing of information about health interventions. Negative affect is associated with information processing and may be a barrier to successful health communication. Design and Main Outcome Measures: We examined associations between negative affect and information processing at the population level. Symptoms of depression (6 items) and cancer worry (1 item) operationalized negative affect; attention to health information (5 items) and cancer information-seeking experiences (6 items) operationalized information processing. Results: Higher cancer worry was associated with more attention to health information (p     

The virtual cutting edge: The Internet and adolescent self-injury.

The 2 studies reported here use observational data from message boards to investigate how adolescents solicit and share information related to self-injurious behavior. Study 1 examines the prevalence and nature of these message boards, their users, and most commonly discussed topics. Study 2 was intended to explore the correlations between content areas raised for discussion. Both studies were intended to shed light on the role of message boards in spreading information about self-injurious practices and influencing help-seeking behavior. More than 400 self-injury message boards were identified. Most are populated by females who describe themselves as between 12 and 20 years of age. Findings show that online interactions clearly provide essential social support for otherwise isolated adolescents, but they may also normalize and encourage self-injurious behavior and add potentially lethal behaviors to the repertoire of established adolescent self-injurers and those exploring identity options. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Review of The Therapist's Internet Handbook: More Than 1300 Web Sites and Resources for Mental Health Professionals.

Review of book, Robert F. Stamps and Peter M. Barach (Aus.) The Therapist's Internet Handbook: More Than 1300 Web Sites and Resources for Mental Health Professionals. New York: Norton, 2001, 368 pp. ISBN 0-393-70342-8. Reviewed by Norma P. Simon. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Internet interventions: In review, in use, and into the future.

The provision of health care over the Internet is a rapidly evolving and potentially beneficial means of delivering treatment otherwise unsought or unobtainable. Internet interventions are typically behavioral treatments operationalized and transformed for Web delivery with the goal of symptom improvement. The literature on the feasibility and utility of Internet interventions is limited, and there are even fewer outcome study findings. This article reviews empirically tested Internet interventions and provides an overview of the issues in developing and/or using them in clinical practice. Future directions and implications are also addressed. Although Internet interventions will not likely replace face-to-face care, there is little doubt that they will grow in importance as a powerful component of successful psychobehavioral treatment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The Impact of Patient-Centered Information on Patients' Treatment Satisfaction and Outcomes in Traumatic Brain Injury Rehabilitation.

Objective: To evaluate the effects on patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) of detailed, personalized information about their injuries, acute care treatment, and rehabilitation progress. Participants: Twenty-eight former or present military personnel (mean age = 30 years) with moderate to severe TBI (mean of 29 days spent in intensive care before admission to TBI unit). Design: Two (personalized information vs. general information) × 2 (high- vs. low-patient preference for health care information) factorial design. Interpersonal behavior of patients, information providers, and health care staff were measured by the Impact Message Inventory. Outcome Measures: Rehabilitation Intensity of Therapy Scale, Functional Independence Measure, Treatment Satisfaction Questionnaire. Results: Patients given personalized information exerted greater effort in physical therapy, made greater improvement in functional independence, and were more satisfied with rehabilitation treatment. Patient preference for information and ratings of interpersonal behavior were largely unrelated to patient outcomes. Conclusion: Cognitively impaired TBI patients can benefit from interventions designed to enhance their sense of control and personal involvement in their own care. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Trying to beat the system: Misuse of the Internet to assist in avoiding the detection of psychological symptom dissimulation.

Although the Internet may be beneficial to clinical practice, its potential for misuse cannot be overlooked. The current probe identified Internet Web sites that contained information that violated the test security of psychological assessment instruments. Five individuals, using multiple search engines, conducted Internet searches to evaluate samples of Web sites. Sites were classified into 1 of 3 levels according to the degree of threat they posed to test security. A small number (2-5%) appeared to be a direct threat to test security. The findings are discussed and recommendations for promoting more ethical use of the Internet are made. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Disembodied intimacies: Identity and relationship on the Internet.

This panel explored the psychological impact of today's expanding computer technology. Speakers addressed such phenomena as computer-mediated relationships, experimentation with different aspects of self via the Internet, and changes in children's play due to the new technology. The impact of the digital revolution on psychoanalytic treatment itself was also explored, including the prospect of computer-mediated therapy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

General Health in Organizations: Relative Relevance of Emotional Intelligence, Trust, and Organizational Support.

This study examined the predictive ability of emotional intelligence (EI), trust, and organizational support in general health. The sample consisted of 250 middle-level executives from 2-wheeler manufacturing organizations. Results suggest that the dimension of EI termed positive attitude about life predicted both factors of general health positively: (a) sense of accomplishment and contribution and (b) botheration-free existence. Organizational support predicted sense of accomplishment and contribution, whereas vertical trust predicted botheration-free existence, accompanied by the assertiveness and positive self-concept dimension of EI. The implications of the results are discussed in terms of promoting the general health of employees through training on EI skills and through the creation of an atmosphere of trust and recognition within the organization. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The language of online leadership: Gender and youth engagement on the Internet.

This study examines the JUNIOR SUMMIT online community, which consisted of 3,062 adolescents representing 139 countries, varying SES, and a range of experience with computers. The online forum culminated in the election of 100 delegates. By analyzing the messages posted before results of the election were announced, we explore whether language use predicts who was elected as a leader, as well as gender differences in leadership style. Results indicate that the young online leaders do not adhere to adult leadership styles of contributing many ideas, sticking to task, and using powerful language. On the contrary, while the young people elected as delegates do contribute more, their linguistic style is likely to keep the goals and needs of the group as central--by referring to the group rather than to themselves, and by synthesizing the posts of others rather than solely contributing their own ideas. Furthermore, both boy and girl leaders follow this pattern of interpersonal language use. These results reassure us that young people can be civically engaged and community minded, while indicating that these concepts themselves may change through contact with the next generation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Bringing meaning to numbers: The impact of evaluative categories on decisions.

Decision makers are often quite poor at using numeric information in decisions. The results of 4 experiments demonstrate that a manipulation of evaluative meaning (i.e., the extent to which an attribute can be mapped onto a good/bad scale; this manipulation is accomplished through the addition of visual boundary lines and evaluative labels to a graphical format) has a robust influence in health judgments and choices and across diverse adult populations. The manipulation resulted in greater use of numeric quality-of-care information in judgments and less reliance on an irrelevant affective state among the less numerate. Recall results for provided quality-of-care numbers suggested that the manipulation did not influence depth of number processing with the exception of cost information that was not remembered as well. Results of a reaction-time paradigm revealed that feelings were more accessible than thoughts in the presence of the manipulation, suggesting that the effect may be due, at least in part, to an affective mechanism. Numeric information is often provided in decisions, but may not be usable by consumers without assistance from information providers. Implications for consumer decision making and the functions of affect are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of trust in program evaluation: Some guidelines for the perplexed administrator.

This paper argues that the major barrier to implementing program evaluation systems is not the lack of an adequate evaluation technology but rather the lack of an adequate foundation of trust. Basic psychological research in the areas of experimental games, source credibility, and interpersonal trust was examined in order to provide psychologists and other professionals with some potential guidelines for trust development. Application of the guidelines was illustrated with examples from two departments in a particular university setting. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Health-related Internet use, coping, social support, and health indicators in people living with HIV/AIDS: Preliminary results from a community survey.

Widespread Internet use has revolutionized health information and patient education for persons with chronic illnesses. The authors surveyed 147 HIV-positive persons to examine factors associated with Internet use and associations between Internet use and health. Information, motivation, and behavioral skills associated with using the Internet were related to Internet use. The authors found that health-related Internet use was associated with HIV disease knowledge, active coping, information-seeking coping, and social support among persons who were using the Internet. These preliminary findings suggest an association between using the Internet for health-related information and health benefits among people living with HIV/AIDS, supporting the development of interventions to close the digital divide in HIV/AIDS care. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Introduction to the Special Section on the Future of Health Psychology.

Following 25 years of landmark progress, health psychology faces even greater change in the foreseeable future. Evolving patterns of health and illness and developments in medicine and related fields will shape the future of health psychology. The articles in this special section discuss these future issues in several areas: the biopsychosocial model, changes in demographics, prevention, clinical health psychology interventions, health care financing, and new technologies. In every case, the future holds a variety of important challenges and opportunities in research, practice, training, and policy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Measuring the Effectiveness of Mental Health Courts: Challenges and Recommendations.

How will we know if mental health courts are effective? The answers provided by future evaluation research will reflect the extent to which the social and procedural complexity of mental health courts drives the research design and plan. This article identifies the research challenges associated with studying the effectiveness of an intervention that is nonstandardized by nature and highly dependent on macro and local influences within the environment as well as personal preferences and relationship dynamics within the intervention itself. Explored are the research challenges related to isolating the independent effects associated with mental health courts. The article concludes with recommendations for how best to evaluate mental health courts to inform best practice and policy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The effects of widowhood on physical and mental health, health behaviors, and health outcomes: The Women's Health Initiative.

This study examined whether widowhood was associated with physical and mental health, health behaviors, and health outcomes using a cross-sectional (N=72,247) and prospective (N=55,724) design in women aged 50-79 years participating in the Women's Health Initiative observational study (85.4% White). At baseline, married women reported better physical and mental health and generally better health behaviors than widowed women. Whereas women who remained married over the 3-year period showed stability in mental health, recent widows experienced marked impairments and longer term widows showed stability or slight improvements. Both groups of widows reported more unintentional weight loss over the 3-year period. Changes in physical health and health behaviors were inconsistent, with generally small effect sizes. Findings underscore the resilience of older women and their capacity to reestablish connections, but point to the need for services that strengthen social support among women who have difficulty during this transition. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)