Cited by 135Health Literacy and Information AccessibilityPsychosomatic Disorders and Their TreatmentsCOVID-19 and Mental Health

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Cyberchondria and its Relationships with Related Constructs: a Network Analysis

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Starcevic, Vladan, Baggio, Stéphanie, Berle, David, Khazaal, Yasser, Viswasam, Kirupamani·2019·Psychiatric Quarterly

DOI 10.1007/s11126-019-09640-5

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Abstract

Cyberchondria denotes repeated online searches for health information that are associated with increasing levels of health anxiety. The aims of this study were to apply network analysis to investigate the extent to which cyberchondria is a distinct construct, ascertain which of the related constructs have the strongest relationships with cyberchondria and investigate whether some of the symptoms of cyberchondria are more central to the construct of cyberchondria. Questionnaires assessing the severity of cyberchondria, health anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder symptoms, intolerance of uncertainty, problematic Internet use, anxiety, depression and somatic symptoms were administered to 751 participants who searched for health information online during a previous 3-month period and were recruited from an online crowdsourcing platform. Network analyses were used to compute the networks, perform community detection tests and calculate centrality indices. Results suggest that cyberchondria is a relatively specific syndrome-like construct, distinct from all related constructs and consisting of interrelated symptoms. It has the strongest relationships with problematic Internet use and health anxiety. No symptom of cyberchondria emerged clearly as more central to the construct of cyberchondria. Future research should aim to deepen our understanding of cyberchondria and its links with psychopathology, especially its close relationship with problematic Internet use.

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Authors: Starcevic, V., Baggio, S., Berle, D., Khazaal, Y., & Viswasam, K.
Affiliations: University of Geneva (CH)
University of Technology Sydney (AU)
University Hospital of Geneva (CH)
Nepean Hospital (AU)
ORCID: Starcevic, Vladan
Baggio, Stéphanie
Berle, David
Khazaal, Yasser
Viswasam, Kirupamani
Venue: Psychiatric Quarterly
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published: 2019-05-16
Volume: 90
Issue: 3
Pages: 491-505
ISSN: 0033-2720 (ISSN-L)
1573-6709
DOI: 10.1007/s11126-019-09640-5
OpenAlex: W2945039564
Cited by: 135
References: 45
Citations by year: 2026: 20 · 2025: 20 · 2024: 15 · 2023: 26 · 2022: 21 · 2021: 16 · 2020: 17
FWCI: 18.39
Type: journal article
Language: en
Open access: bronze
doi.org
Licence: www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
www.springer.com/tdm (vor)
Locations: Psychiatric Quarterly (publishedVersion)
PubMed (publishedVersion)
Archive ouverte UNIGE (University of Geneva) (acceptedVersion, other-oa)
BORIS (University Library Bern) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
UTS ePRESS (University of Technology Sydney) (submittedVersion)
Archive ouverte UNIGE (University of Geneva) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Open Access CRIS of the University of Bern
Funders: National Health and Medical Research Council (GNT1122203)
Topics: Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Health Literacy and Information Accessibility
Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Psychosomatic Disorders and Their Treatments
Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › COVID-19 and Mental Health
Keywords: cyberchondria, health anxiety, problematic internet use, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, intolerance of uncertainty, online health information seeking, depression, somatic symptoms, symptom network structure, construct distinctiveness
MeSH terms: Anxiety, Depression, Humans, Hypochondriasis, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Surveys and Questionnaires, Cluster Analysis, Behavior, Addictive, Internet, Uncertainty, Consumer Health Information

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Cyberchondria and its Relationships with Related Constructs: a Network Analysis

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