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Cyberchondria: a systematic review

Cyberchondria: a systematic review Cyberchondria describes excessive or repeated online health-related information seeking associated with an increased level of health anxiety. Given the nascent nature of the concept of cyberchondria, this systematic review attempts to summarize the current landscape of cyberchondria research.Design/methodology/approachBased on a comprehensive search and systematic filtering process, 40 articles were included in the final sample.FindingsCharacteristics of these articles, measures of cyberchondria and factors related to cyberchondria were reported. This review found that the measures of cyberchondria are still in the developmental stages and thus require further validation in future studies. In addition, while studies have examined various factors associated with cyberchondria, the detailed processes involved in the development of cyberchondria require further conceptualization.Originality/valueThe contributions of this review are threefold: first, it presented a comprehensive overview of studies on cyberchondria by addressing their key characteristics such as country of study, sample size and research method. Second, this review analyzed major assessment tools of cyberchondria to offer useful guidance on future investigations on cyberchondria. Third, it identified important antecedents and consequences of cyberchondria in previous research, which contributes to theoretical understanding of how cyberchondria develops. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Internet Research Emerald Publishing

Cyberchondria: a systematic review

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References (60)

Publisher
Emerald Publishing
Copyright
© Emerald Publishing Limited
ISSN
1066-2243
DOI
10.1108/intr-03-2020-0148
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Cyberchondria describes excessive or repeated online health-related information seeking associated with an increased level of health anxiety. Given the nascent nature of the concept of cyberchondria, this systematic review attempts to summarize the current landscape of cyberchondria research.Design/methodology/approachBased on a comprehensive search and systematic filtering process, 40 articles were included in the final sample.FindingsCharacteristics of these articles, measures of cyberchondria and factors related to cyberchondria were reported. This review found that the measures of cyberchondria are still in the developmental stages and thus require further validation in future studies. In addition, while studies have examined various factors associated with cyberchondria, the detailed processes involved in the development of cyberchondria require further conceptualization.Originality/valueThe contributions of this review are threefold: first, it presented a comprehensive overview of studies on cyberchondria by addressing their key characteristics such as country of study, sample size and research method. Second, this review analyzed major assessment tools of cyberchondria to offer useful guidance on future investigations on cyberchondria. Third, it identified important antecedents and consequences of cyberchondria in previous research, which contributes to theoretical understanding of how cyberchondria develops.

Journal

Internet Research – Emerald Publishing

Published: Mar 10, 2021

Keywords: Cyberchondria; Online health information seeking; Health anxiety; Measures; Antecedents; Consequences

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