A finger in the wound - the dilemma of measurability in digital health literacy
The Research Project
Health decisions and health behaviors are an integral part of everyday life (Lane & Aldoory 2019; Nutbeam 2000; Okan et al. 2015; Sørensen et al. 2012). There are clear socio-economic differences in these choices and behaviors that affect not only health behaviors, but also health outcomes such as the prevalence of infectious diseases, mental health problems, diabetes, cancer and life expectancy (Dragano 2022, Lampert & Kroll 2010; Quinn & Kumar 2014). Against this background and as people become increasingly more involved in their own health, concepts such as health literacy - the ability to access, understand, evaluate, and apply health information - are becoming increasingly important. Like other social processes, they are subject to digitalization. The technologies introduced by the digitalization of the healthcare system, such as the electronic medical record (EMR) or digital health applications (Digitale Gesundheitsanwendungen (DiGA)), present patients with new challenges in managing their health. In addition, the growing importance of social media, especially in the health sector, which consciously or unconsciously provides us with new information all the time, is also challenging people to access, understand, evaluate, and apply health information (Domhoff et al. 2021; Jorzig & Sarangi 2020; Weitzel et al. 2021). This issue is not only becoming increasingly important on the political agenda, such as evidenced by various action plans such as in the USA, Australia and Germany, but also in research (Okan & Pinheiro 2020).
Although there are several studies on digital health literacy (dHL), exist, there is still no consensus on the concept or measurement tools (Mackert et al. 2015). The discussion revolves around two main issues: 1) conceptual understanding across disciplines and 2) operationalization and measurement of (digital) health literacy ((d)HL). The lack of theoretical foundation and psychometric validation, as well as the reliance on subjective measurement instruments are criticized (e.g., Hurrelmann et al. 2020; Seifert et al. 2022; Sørensen et al. 2012; Wirtz & Soellner 2022). There is a need for valid instruments to investigate the social consequences of (d)HL, create theoretically grounded concepts and to construct valid measurements.
The aim of this dissertation project is to revise the concept of digital health literacy in terms of its theoretical foundation and to incorporate a social science perspective. The extent to which literacy and numeracy skills are an integral part of this concept will also be investigated. Finally, an objective measuring instrument will be developed.
What I need the IRB for
The IRB will allow me to expand my research contacts on an international level and thus benefit from the extensive research tradition of the Anglo-American and Oceanic countries on this topic. This allows me not only to expand my knowledge not only on a theoretical and conceptual level with key figures in these fields, but also to present my research internationally and establish international contacts for the RUB The contacts I make during my research stay enable me to expand my expertise. Colleagues and students can also benefit from these long-term contacts and the knowledge gained.