Patient Needs and Sources of Drug Information in Singapore: Is the Internet Replacing Former Sources?

2009 ◽  
Vol 43 (4) ◽  
pp. 732-739 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cai-Hong Ho ◽  
Yu Ko ◽  
Mui-Ling Tan

Background: Patients are exposed to a broad range of drug information (DI) sources; among them is the Internet, which has been increasingly used over the years, especially by adolescents. Objective: To identify patients' needs and common sources of DI: examine the differences in use of DI sources among groups, by age and sex; and better understand patients' use of the Internet as a source of DI. Methods: A quota sample of 201 outpatients from National University Hospital in Singapore was surveyed. A questionnaire was developed to examine patients' needs for and common sources of DI as well as their experience with and attitudes toward using the Internet as a DI source. Results: Physicians (83.1%) and pharmacists (57.7%) were reported to be the most commonly used sources of DI regarding prescription drugs (n = 201), whereas pharmacists (40.9%) and relatives or friends (40.9%) were the most commonly reported sources for information about nonprescription drugs (n = 149). Respondents most commonly sought DI about adverse effects (72.6%), dosing (54.7%), and indications (54.2%). Among Internet users, people aged 31–50 years were more likely than those in other age groups to search the Internet for DI (p < 0.001). The Internet was considered to be a convenient source with a broad range of information; however, patients faced both the inability to find needed information and uncertainty about information reliability when searching (or DI on the Internet. Conclusions: Pharmacists play an important role in counseling patients about prescription and nonprescription drugs. There is a need to educate patients on how to locate and evaluate DI on the Internet.

2008 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 31
Author(s):  
Mohammadreza Lrvani

The purpose of this investigation is to study the internet addition and its psychological-social effects in female internet users in Esfahan City, in the year 2006. The statistical population of this study was the whole population of the female internet users of the cities of Isfahan and Shaheenshar. 115 people (54 single females and 61 married females) who were the internet users of Isfahan City comprised the sample of this study. They were selected using the multistage cluster sampling method. The instrument of this investigation was a researcher-made questionnaire which contained 23 items measuring addiction to the Internet. The following four questions were suggested in this study:1. What are the characteristics of the population of the Internet-addicted users in Esfahan City?2. How is the addiction to the Internet among the female Internet users in Esfahan City?3. How are the common psychological disorders among the female Internet addicted users in Esfahan City?4. How are the social effects of using the internet among the Internet addicted females in Esfahan City?What follows is some of the obtained results. Addiction to the internet among the internet-addicted females is more than the average level. The percentage of addiction to the Internet is not the same in different female age groups. The internet-addicted female users prefer using the Internet to being with their family, walking around with others, and visiting the relatives and friends. Use of the Internet is interesting and different for the usual life of people who are emotionally depressed. It may also lead to the seclusion of some female Internet-dependent users. Most of the female Internet-addicted users believe that the use of the Internet is psychologically pacifying and the troubles caused by others or disruption in internet connection makes them nervous.Statistical methods used in this study: one-variable tests, Chi-square, Analysis of recognition


Author(s):  
Peter Anderberg ◽  
Lisa Skär ◽  
Linda Abrahamsson ◽  
Johan Sanmartin Berglund

The use of the internet has considerably increased over recent years, and the importance of internet use has also grown as services have gone online. Sweden is largely an information society like other countries with high reported use amongst European countries. In line with digitalization development, society is also changing, and many activities and services today take place on the internet. This development could potentially lead to those older persons who do not use the internet or do not follow the development of services on the internet finding it difficult to take part in information and activities that no longer occur in the physical world. This has led to a digital divide between groups, where the older generations (60+), in particular, have been affected. In a large study of Sweden’s adult population in 2019, 95 percent of the overall population was said to be internet users, and the corresponding number for users over 66 years of age was 84%. This study shows that the numbers reported about older peoples’ internet use, most likely, are vastly overestimated and that real use is significantly lower, especially among the oldest age groups. We report that 62.4% of the study subjects are internet users and that this number most likely also is an overestimation. When looking at nonresponders to the questionnaire, we find that they display characteristics generally attributed to non-use, such as lower education, lower household economy, and lower cognitive functioning.


2021 ◽  
pp. 026732312110467
Author(s):  
Daniel Calderón Gómez ◽  
Massimo Ragnedda ◽  
Maria Laura Ruiu

This article investigates the entanglement between socio-economic and technological factors in conditioning people's patterns of Internet use. We analysed the influence of sociodemographic and techno-social aspects in conditioning the distinctive digital practices developed by Internet users. By using a representative sample of UK users and different methods of analysis, such as factor analysis, K-means cluster analysis and logit analysis, this study shows how techno-social variables have a stronger effect than socio-economic variables in explaining the advanced use of the Internet.


Author(s):  
Juliana Yamaguchi Neves da Rocha ◽  
Valéria Farinazzo Martins

In spite of the great potential for the development of mobile banking in Brazil, since the banking index reaches more than half of the population and the number of internet users is even higher, this potential is not evenly distributed among the age groups in the country. Taking into account the tendency to resist new technologies as one ages, this chapter aimed to identify the factors that lead the Brazilian population aged 45 years or over to use the internet and, within this spectrum, identify the barriers to the adoption of mobile banking technology. A questionnaire was applied and 113 responses were analyzed and categorized between functional and psychological aspects in these barriers. This chapter presents the results of this research.


2019 ◽  
pp. 1818-1839
Author(s):  
Hosnieh Rafiee ◽  
Christoph Meinel

With the increased use of the Internet to share confidential information with other users around the world, the demands to protect this information are also increasing. This is why, today, privacy has found its important place in users' lives. However, Internet users have different interpretations of the meaning of privacy. This fact makes it difficult to find the best way to address the privacy issue. In addition, most of the current standard protocols in use over the Internet do not support the level of privacy that most users expect. The purpose of this chapter is to discuss the best balance between users' expectation and the practical level of privacy to address user privacy needs and evaluate the most important protocols from privacy aspects.


2012 ◽  
pp. 608-619 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Mazur ◽  
Margaret L. Signorella ◽  
Michelle Hough

Early research on older adult computer users focused on the possibility for technology to increase social interaction and alleviate loneliness. Subsequent research has been equivocal on the possible benefits of the Internet for well-being. Nonetheless, in spite of an initial “gray gap,” older adults are increasingly joining younger cohorts in using the Internet. Barriers to older adults’ use of the Internet remain, such as physical and cognitive limitations. Attitudinal barriers may exist, but it is unclear whether these result from lack of experience or differences in income or health status. Business researchers have found that older persons differ from other age groups in their Internet engagement patterns, including online buying. Future research directions include whether computers can improve cognitive functioning and quality of life, how to increase engagement levels, and if there will always be a lag in technology use among older adults.


Cyber Crime ◽  
2013 ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Tejaswini Herath ◽  
H. Raghav Rao ◽  
Shambhu Upadhyaya

It is estimated that over 1 billion people now have access to the Internet. This unprecedented access and use of Internet by individuals around the world, however, is accompanied by malicious and mischievous activities online. With the traditional crimes such as fraud, identity theft, and harassment now being committed with the use of the Internet, and networked home computers being exploited to carry out attacks such as denial of service, spamming, phishing and virus/worm propagation, it has become important to investigate security and privacy issues as they pertain to individual Internet users. To date very little is known about what characteristics of internet users affect their computing and on-line behaviors as they relate to security online. While some attention has been paid to understand the security issues affecting corporations, research investigating security issues as they relate to home users is still in infancy. Drawing from disciplines such as criminology, sociology, consumer fraud, and information security, this study seeks to find the role of computing skills and computer training, social influence, and gender on person’s vulnerability to Internet crimes. Our findings are significant and shed light in this important area of Internet crime contributing to the information security literature.


2011 ◽  
pp. 3371-3388
Author(s):  
Pippa Norris

The core issue for this study concerns less the social than the political consequences of the rise of knowledge societies; in particular, the capacity of the Internet for strengthening democratic participation and civic engagement linking citizens and government. To consider these issues, Part I summarizes debates about the impact of the Internet on the public sphere. The main influence of this development, as it is theorized in a market model, will be determined by the “supply” and “demand” for electronic information and communications about government and politics. Demand, in turn, is assumed to be heavily dependent upon the social characteristics of Internet users and their prior political orientations. Given this understanding, the study predicts that the primary impact of knowledge societies in democratic societies will be upon facilitating cause-oriented and civic forms of political activism, thereby strengthening social movements and interest groups, more than upon conventional channels of political participation exemplified by voting, parties, and election campaigning. Part II summarizes the sources of survey data and the key measures of political activism used in this study, drawing upon the 19-nation European Social Survey, 2002. Part III examines the evidence for the relationship between use of the Internet and indicators of civic engagement. The conclusion in Part IV summarizes the results and considers the broader implications for governance and democracy.


Author(s):  
Pippa Norris

The core issue for this study concerns less the social than the political consequences of the rise of knowledge societies; in particular, the capacity of the Internet for strengthening democratic participation and civic engagement linking citizens and government. To consider these issues, Part I summarizes debates about the impact of the Internet on the public sphere. The main influence of this development, as it is theorized in a market model, will be determined by the “supply” and “demand” for electronic information and communications about government and politics. Demand, in turn, is assumed to be heavily dependent upon the social characteristics of Internet users and their prior political orientations. Given this understanding, the study predicts that the primary impact of knowledge societies in democratic societies will be upon facilitating cause-oriented and civic forms of political activism, thereby strengthening social movements and interest groups, more than upon conventional channels of political participation exemplified by voting, parties, and election campaigning. Part II summarizes the sources of survey data and the key measures of political activism used in this study, drawing upon the 19-nation European Social Survey, 2002. Part III examines the evidence for the relationship between use of the Internet and indicators of civic engagement. The conclusion in Part IV summarizes the results and considers the broader implications for governance and democracy.


Author(s):  
Tejaswini Herath

It is estimated that over 1 billion people now have access to the Internet. This unprecedented access and use of Internet by individuals around the world, however, is accompanied by malicious and mischievous activities online. With the traditional crimes such as fraud, identity theft, and harassment now being committed with the use of the Internet, and networked home computers being exploited to carry out attacks such as denial of service, spamming, phishing and virus/worm propagation, it has become important to investigate security and privacy issues as they pertain to individual Internet users. To date very little is known about what characteristics of internet users affect their computing and on-line behaviors as they relate to security online. While some attention has been paid to understand the security issues affecting corporations, research investigating security issues as they relate to home users is still in infancy. Drawing from disciplines such as criminology, sociology, consumer fraud, and information security, this study seeks to find the role of computing skills and computer training, social influence, and gender on person’s vulnerability to Internet crimes. Our findings are significant and shed light in this important area of Internet crime contributing to the information security literature.


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