The DOI matches its Crossref record; 86 of the 87 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Low Health Literacy and Evaluation of Online Health Information: A Systematic Review of the Literature
Open accessAbstract
BACKGROUND: Recent years have witnessed a dramatic increase in consumer online health information seeking. The quality of online health information, however, remains questionable. The issue of information evaluation has become a hot topic, leading to the development of guidelines and checklists to design high-quality online health information. However, little attention has been devoted to how consumers, in particular people with low health literacy, evaluate online health information. OBJECTIVE: The main aim of this study was to review existing evidence on the association between low health literacy and (1) people's ability to evaluate online health information, (2) perceived quality of online health information, (3) trust in online health information, and (4) use of evaluation criteria for online health information. METHODS: Five academic databases (MEDLINE, PsycINFO, Web of Science, CINAHL, and Communication and Mass-media Complete) were systematically searched. We included peer-reviewed publications investigating differences in the evaluation of online information between people with different health literacy levels. RESULTS: After abstract and full-text screening, 38 articles were included in the review. Only four studies investigated the specific role of low health literacy in the evaluation of online health information. The other studies examined the association between educational level or other skills-based proxies for health literacy, such as general literacy, and outcomes. Results indicate that low health literacy (and related skills) are negatively related to the ability to evaluate online health information and trust in online health information. Evidence on the association with perceived quality of online health information and use of evaluation criteria is inconclusive. CONCLUSIONS: The findings indicate that low health literacy (and related skills) play a role in the evaluation of online health information. This topic is therefore worth more scholarly attention. Based on the results of this review, future research in this field should (1) specifically focus on health literacy, (2) devote more attention to the identification of the different criteria people use to evaluate online health information, (3) develop shared definitions and measures for the most commonly used outcomes in the field of evaluation of online health information, and (4) assess the relationship between the different evaluative dimensions and the role played by health literacy in shaping their interplay.
Overview
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
The source backs part of the claim, not all of it — or backs it for a different population, condition or comparison.
In the citing paper
“Our findings echoes Diviani et al., who highlighted that low health literacy impedes the ability to critically evaluate online health information [40].”
From Acceptance and perceived usefulness of digital health services in the management of chronic urticaria: a survey of patients and physicians (2025) · cites this paper as [40]
Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Citations
Cites
The Measurement of Observer Agreement for Categorical Data
Landis, J. R., & Koch, G. G. (1977) · Biometrics · doi:10.2307/2529310 · Cited by 81,148
GRADE guidelines: 3. Rating the quality of evidence
Balshem, H., Helfand, M., Schünemann, H. J., Oxman, A. D., Kunz, R., Brozek, J., Vist, G. E., Falck-Ytter, Y., Meerpohl, J., & Norris, S. (2011) · Journal of Clinical Epidemiology · doi:10.1016/j.jclinepi.2010.07.015 · Cited by 8,285
Nutbeam, D. (2000) · Health Promotion International · doi:10.1093/heapro/15.3.259 · Cited by 5,205
Beyond Accuracy: What Data Quality Means to Data Consumers
Wang, R. Y., & Strong, D. M. (1996) · Journal of Management Information Systems · doi:10.1080/07421222.1996.11518099 · Cited by 4,672
The Influence of Source Credibility on Communication Effectiveness
Hovland, C. I., & Weiss, W. (1951) · Public Opinion Quarterly · doi:10.1086/266350 · Cited by 3,543
eHEALS: The eHealth Literacy Scale
Norman, C. D., & Skinner, H. A. (2006) · Journal of Medical Internet Research · doi:10.2196/jmir.8.4.e27 · Cited by 2,680
(2017) · doi:10.5040/9798400682018.ch-003 · Cited by 2,248
Lumsdaine, A. A. (1954) · Educational Technology Research and Development · doi:10.1007/bf02713272 · Cited by 2,237
Quick Assessment of Literacy in Primary Care: The Newest Vital Sign
Weiss, B. (2005) · The Annals of Family Medicine · doi:10.1370/afm.405 · Cited by 2,222
The test of functional health literacy in adults
Parker, R. M., Baker, D. W., Williams, M. V., & Nurss, J. R. (1995) · Journal of General Internal Medicine · doi:10.1007/bf02640361 · Cited by 2,034
Flagged first, then by citations
1 of the 87 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.
Research works printed but not linked: 9
- Flanagin, AJ, 2008, Digital Media, Youth,Credibility. The John D.Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Series on Digital Media and Learning, 5
- Schulz, P, 2005, Stud Commun Sci, 5, 1
- Davis, T C, 1993, Fam Med, 25, 391
- Nurss, J, 1998, Directions for administration and scoring and technical data, short test of functional health literacy in adults (STOFHLA-English and STOFHLA-Spanish)
- 10.1080/08858190701348067 · DOI
- Lawson, Rob, 2011, N Z Med J, 124, 98
- Marazienė, Daiva, 2012, Medicina (Kaunas), 48, 371
- Richter, J G, 2009, Clin Exp Rheumatol, 27, 15
- Zoellner, Jamie, 2009, Prev Chronic Dis, 6, A128
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Items 601–651 of 651
Cultural capital and health literacy among urban communities in Malaysia: A cross-sectional study
Ibrahim, N. I. H., Rahman, A. H. A., Abdullah, A. B., & Shohaimi, S. (2026) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0352662
Digital Health Literacy as a Pathway to Better Mental Well-being
(2026) · Frontiers research topics · doi:10.3389/978-2-8325-8274-9
Xie, Q., Ye, D., Ren, R., & Hua, M. (2026) · Lecture notes in computer science · doi:10.1007/978-3-032-29596-5_16
Public Trust and Compliance for Disaster Management: Insights From COVID‐19 in Iran
Aghdam, S. R., Ghasemzadeh, B., Hartley, K., & Adlipour, S. (2026) · Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management · doi:10.1111/1468-5973.70196
Borge, C. R., Wahl, A. K., Larsen, M. H., Andersen, M. H., Stavdal, M. N., & Hermansen, Å. (2026) · Journal of Interprofessional Education & Practice · doi:10.1016/j.xjep.2026.100838
You, K. H., Yoon, H. Y., Kim, D., Lim, J. H., Choi, W., Lee, H. W., & Lee, S. (2026) · Journal of Medical Internet Research · doi:10.2196/90335
Marey, A., Pal, B., Yaşar, A. B., Rath, S., Francese, G., Ghorab, H. M., Niemierko, J., Jamill, M. S. W., & Umair, M. (2026) · JMIR Formative Research · doi:10.2196/95883
Do we Change Our Behaviour When Women Tell Us to?!
Blessing, J. N., Ruess, H.-S., Kinnbrock, S., & Koristka, T. (2026) · European Journal of Health Communication · doi:10.47368/ejhc.2026.104
Nwobodo-Nzeribe, H. N., Utibe, E. V., Asoronye, G. O., Obonyano, K. N. C., & Ndulue, T. O. C. (2026) · Iconic Research and Engineering Journals · doi:10.64388/irev10i1-1720108
Wang, T., & Bashir, M. N. (2026) · Computers · doi:10.3390/computers15090551
Solihin, O., Siregar, B., Mogot, Y. D. Y., Abdullah, A. Z., Harahap, M., & Harahap, M. (2026) · JMIR Public Health and Surveillance · doi:10.2196/95799
Zoabi, A. M., Salah, L. A., Deeb, T. Z., Igbaria, J. N., Mustafa, A. A., AbedRabbo, Q. M., Amer, S. F., Al-muhtaseb, D. N., Al-Haddad, T. Z., Kayed, D. A., et al. (2026) · Frontiers in Public Health · doi:10.3389/fpubh.2026.1893070
Ciarlo, G., Oehlrich, M., & Huebner, J. (2026) · Supportive Care in Cancer · doi:10.1007/s00520-026-11049-3
Firmansyah, A., & Astuti, R. D. (2026) · JOURNAL OF EDUCATIONAL SCIENCES · doi:10.31258/jes.10.8.p.241-255
Padricelli, G. M., & D’Auria, V. (2026) · SN Social Sciences · doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-10461982/v1
Lived experience as guidance: A qualitative study of parental advice for craniosynostosis
Silvestri, T. P., Osborn, A. J., & Roberts, R. (2026) · Journal of Child Health Care · doi:10.1177/13674935261476741
Park, H. A., Ahn, K. O., Park, J. O., & Kim, S. (2026) · Frontiers in Public Health · doi:10.3389/fpubh.2026.1883113
Wang, Y., 罗, L. 岚. L., Chen, L., Zhang, H., Xiong, X., Huo, D., Jia, Y., & Shen, J. (2026) · Frontiers in Public Health · doi:10.3389/fpubh.2026.1861499
Digital technology use and livelihood resilience: Evidence from rural China under health shocks
Zhang, X., & Yue, Z. (2026) · Economic Analysis and Policy · doi:10.1016/j.eap.2026.08.044
Consulting Dr. Google: Two experimental studies on seeking mental health information online
Siebenhaar, K. U., & Alpers, G. W. (2026) · Internet Interventions · doi:10.1016/j.invent.2026.100992
Nabilah, I. F., Maulani, W., & Nirmala, A. P. (2026) · Journal of Psychological Perspective · doi:10.47679/jopp.8316092026
Gender disparities in eHealth literacy among Chinese university students and their decomposition
Song, Y., Tuersun, Y., Zhou, Q., Wang, W., Yu, Y., Wang, C., Liu, H., Yao, W., Xie, Y., Liang, Z., et al. (2026) · Frontiers in Public Health · doi:10.3389/fpubh.2026.1919426
Egészségkommunikáció : egészségértés a digitális korban
Szilczl, D. P. (2026) · JEL-KÉP · doi:10.20520/jel-kep.2026.1.1
Yurtseven, C. N., & Canbaz, M. (2026) · Healthcare · doi:10.3390/healthcare14172862
Fang, Y., He, C., Hu, Y., & Tian, X. (2026) · Journal of Medical Internet Research · doi:10.2196/91516
de Matos, H. G. C., Vieira, S. K., Alvarenga, K. D. F., Berberian, A. P., & Jacob-Corteletti, L. C. B. (2026) · doi:10.1590/scielopreprints.17666
Beierle, S., Reinhart, A., Kuger, S., Walper, S., Reißig, B., Schneider, S., Popp, L., Voigt, B., & Bock, F. D. (2026) · Bundesgesundheitsblatt - Gesundheitsforschung - Gesundheitsschutz · doi:10.1007/s00103-026-04307-6
Çelik, İ., Dinç, F., Belli, M., YAVUZ, A. Y., & Bektaş, M. (2026) · Healthcare · doi:10.3390/healthcare14183038
Bağlar, İ., Keleş, E., Şanlıkan, F., Turan, M., Yilmaz, A., Maraşlı, M., Topaloğlu, T., Dönmez, Y., & Ergenç, C. (2026) · Journal of Health Communication · doi:10.1080/10810730.2026.2733190
Khan, F. N. (2026) · Immunology and Allergy Clinics of North America · doi:10.1016/j.iac.2026.08.001
Wu, N. (2026) · Patient Preference and Adherence · doi:10.2147/ppa.s633393
Zhang, H., Wenxue, Z., & Tang, L. (2026) · Frontiers in Digital Health · doi:10.3389/fdgth.2026.1955608
Taşkan, M. M., & Karataş, Ő. (2026) · Türk Diş Hekimliği Araştırma Dergisi · doi:10.58711/turkishjdentres.vi.1923311
Mim, M. T. T., Ullah, A., Anjir, H., Chowdhury, M. N., & Tahera, S. (2026) · Research Square · doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-10720451/v1
Rodriguez, S., Wetmore, J. B., Caro, D. D., Cabán, M., Uhlmann, W. R., Roberts, J. S., Siegel, K., & Ottman, R. (2026) · Patient Education and Counseling · doi:10.1016/j.pec.2026.110330
Demirtaş, M. S., Yılmaz, M., Yeşildağ, A. A., Güler, S., & Akçalı, N. (2026) · İzmir Tıp Fakültesi Dergisi · doi:10.57221/izmirtip.1858233
Attitudes of Health Professional Parents Towards Childhood Vaccination
Gencer, H., Özkan, S., Serçekuş, P., & Alataş, E. (2026) · İzmir Katip Çelebi Üniversitesi Sağlık Bilimleri Fakültesi Dergisi · doi:10.61399/ikcusbfd.1690539
Xiao, Z., Cui, R., Liu, J., Jing, G., Wei, L., Yang, Y., An, S., & Liu, T. (2026) · Frontiers in Public Health · doi:10.3389/fpubh.2026.1927891 · Cited by 1
YEŞİLDAL, M., Aydoğdu, A., & DAĞDEVİREN, M. (2026) · Türkiye Halk Sağlığı Dergisi · doi:10.20518/tjph.1770651
Health Literacy in the Age of Digitalization in Switzerland: Cross-Sectional Representative Study
Guggiari, E., Jaks, R., Beese, A.-S., & Gani, S. M. D. (2026) · Journal of Medical Internet Research · doi:10.2196/80373
Castillo, V. S., Guerrero, E. J. C., Zapata, R. E., Caraballo, L. J., Polanía, L. R., Parra, N., Ortega, M. A. N. C., Bonfante, J. S. O., Mendoza, N. O. O., Trejo-Magaña, G. Y., et al. (2026) · doi:10.62486/978-9915-9928-4-6
Educación para la salud y el autocuidado: Alfabetización, prevención y calidad de vida
Canova-Barrios, C. J., & Garis, D. N. (2026) · doi:10.62486/978-9915-9928-4-6.ch09
Polanía, L. R., Castillo, V. S., & Cano, C. A. G. (2026) · doi:10.62486/978-9915-9928-4-6.ch11
Дмитриевич, Г. Л. (2026) · City Healthcare · doi:10.47619/2713-2617.zm.2026.v.7i3;189-197
Wang, Q., Zhang, Y., Pang, D., & Fan, C. (2026) · Research Square · doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-10892983/v1
Generative AI Use and the Verification Gap Follow Opposing Social Gradients in Türkiye
Kurç, D. (2026) · Informatics · doi:10.3390/informatics13100173
Peng, M., & Feng, L. (2026) · Frontiers in Public Health · doi:10.3389/fpubh.2026.1986759
Czerska, I. (2026) · Scientific Papers of Silesian University of Technology Organization and Management Series · doi:10.29119/1641-3466.2026.252.8
Ren, J., Lin, J., Zhao, L., & Mou, L. (2026) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-026-77339-2
Prasad, R., Ramanathan, S., & Ankit (2026) · Perspectives in Clinical Research · doi:10.4103/picr.picr_202_26
Metadata
- Authors
- Diviani, N., van den Putte, B., Giani, S., & van Weert, J. C.
- Affiliations
- University of Amsterdam (NL)
- Corresponding author
- Diviani, Nicola
- ORCID
- Diviani, Nicola
- Venue
- Journal of Medical Internet Research
- Publisher
- JMIR Publications Inc.
- Published
- 2015-05-07
- Volume
- 17
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- e112
- ISSN
- 1438-8871 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC4468598
- OpenAlex
- W1923752250
- Cited by
- 638
- References
- 87
- Citations by year
- 2026: 90 · 2025: 76 · 2024: 70 · 2023: 48 · 2022: 74 · 2021: 71 · 2020: 65 · 2019: 44 · 2018: 39 · 2017: 26 · 2016: 29 · 2015: 4
- FWCI
- 5.87
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- cc-by
- Locations
- Journal of Medical Internet Research (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- UvA-DARE (University of Amsterdam) (acceptedVersion, cc-by)
- Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Funders
- National Science Foundation
- Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung (148345)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Health Literacy and Information Accessibility
- Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Information Systems › Information Retrieval and Search Behavior
- Social Sciences › Health › Social Media in Health Education
- Keywords
- low health literacy, online health information, information evaluation, trust in health information, evaluation criteria, health information seeking, consumer health information
- MeSH terms
- Humans, Internet, Trust, Consumer Health Information, Health Literacy, Information Seeking Behavior
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
