Online health information-seeking behaviour: an empirical study of managerial-level employees in Sri Lanka

Abstract

Purpose

Over the past few years, the internet has expanded rapidly, and it has been considered a systematic way that consumers use to retrieve health-related information. However, the existing literature does not provide an articulated view of online health information-seeking behaviour through an in-depth understanding of users’ searching-related behaviour. The objectives of this study are to identify the factors affecting consumers’ health-related internet use and recognise the relationships between those specified and health-related internet use. Finally, the recommendations are made based on the findings.

Design/methodology/approach

An amalgamated model of technology acceptance model and health belief model was used to hypothesise health-related internet use behaviour, which is then tested using a cross-sectional survey of 287 Sri Lankan managerial-level employees. The covariance-based structural equation modelling with AMOS was used to check the study hypotheses.

Findings

Findings of this study depict five factors contributing to consumers’ health-related internet use as follows: perceived health risk towards chronic diseases consisting of perceived susceptibility and perceived severity; health consciousness; perceived usefulness of the internet; perceived ease of internet use; and attitude towards health-related internet use. As theorised, the internet’s perceived usefulness was positively and significantly related to consumers’ use of health-related internet and attitude towards health-related internet use. But as hypothesised, perceived ease of internet use did not directly affect consumers’ use of health-related internet. Further, findings reveal that health-related internet use is estimated by perceived health risk than health consciousness.

Originality/value

Findings reveal that Sri Lankan managerial-level employees have a reactive health behaviour driven by the perceived health risk and the desire to seek online health information.

Citation

Gunasekara, N.P., Fernando, W.M.N. and Karunarathne, E.A.C.P. (2022), "Online health information-seeking behaviour: an empirical study of managerial-level employees in Sri Lanka", International Journal of Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Marketing, Vol. 16 No. 4, pp. 490-512. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJPHM-03-2021-0037