Internet utilization and online health information (OHI) seeking behaviors among middle- and older age working adults in Taiwan - The influence of age, gender, education, and worksite

Purpose: E-delivery of health information has become an irreversible trend. This study examined computer and online health information utilization among middle (40-50 years) and older age (50+ years) working adults. Methods: The survey was administered to employee age 40 years and older from two worksites in Taiwan, a traditional industrial car company and a high-tech LCD company. Results: A total of 533 employees participated. The mean age was 46.33 (SD=5.35; range 40~70 years). Overall, middle age adults were more likely to have ever gone online (84.9% vs. 60.0%; p<.001), visit online more frequently, and stayed longer than the older age group. In addition, middle age adults were also more likely have ever sought for online health information (OHI) (77.9% vs. 56.3%; p<.001), found OHI useful, changed behaviors due to OHI, discussed OHI with others and doctors, and thought life with the Internet as very important. After adjusting for gender, education, and worksite, middle age adults were still more likely to have ever gone online (OR=2.89; 95% CI=[1.77, 4.71]), used the Internet everyday (OR=1.82; 95% CI=[1.15, 2.87]), and stayed online for more than an hour (OR=2.22; 95% CI=[1.43, 3.43]). The differences of their online location, perceived usefulness of OHI, ever discuss OHI with others, and view towards the importance of life with the Internet become non-significant. Bivariate and regression results on the influence of gender, education, and worksite will also be presented. Conclusion: Study results have implication on using eHealth communication among Chinese middle and older age adults.