Evaluating Online Health Behavior Change Programs
Author Information
Author(s): Kerry E Evers, Carol O Cummins, James O Prochaska, Janice M Prochaska
Primary Institution: Pro-Change Behavior Systems
Hypothesis
Are we ready for online health behavior change programs, and are they ready for us?
Conclusion
Many health-related websites do not meet the basic criteria for effective health behavior change programs, and participation in these programs is low.
Supporting Evidence
- Only 8.1% of the websites met all five criteria of the HBC-I Screener.
- 51.6% of websites met the Assess criterion, while only 11.4% met the Anticipatory Guidance criterion.
- Websites in the areas of diet, exercise, and smoking met significantly more criteria than those in alcohol and depression management.
Takeaway
This study looked at websites that help people change their health habits and found that most of them don't do a good job at it.
Methodology
The study reviewed 294 health behavior change websites using the HBC-I Screener to evaluate their quality based on five criteria.
Potential Biases
Potential bias in website selection and evaluation by reviewers.
Limitations
The study primarily focused on the quality of websites and did not assess the effectiveness of the programs.
Participant Demographics
The sample was more highly educated and included more females compared to other national samples.
Statistical Information
P-Value
<0.001
Statistical Significance
p<0.001
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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