scholarly journals The Abortion Web Ecosystem: Cross-Sectional Analysis of Trustworthiness and Bias (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leo Han ◽  
Emily R Boniface ◽  
Lisa Yin Han ◽  
Jonathan Albright ◽  
Nora Doty ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Depressive Disorders ◽  
Rating Scale ◽  
Primary Source ◽  
News Article ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Search Term ◽  
Median Score ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Search Terms ◽  
Pro Choice

BACKGROUND People use the internet as a primary source for learning about medical procedures and their associated safety profiles and risks. Although abortion is one of the most common procedures worldwide among women in their reproductive years, it is controversial and highly politicized. Substantial scientific evidence demonstrates that abortion is safe and does not increase a woman’s future risk for depressive disorders or infertility. The extent to which information found on the internet reflects these medical facts in a trustworthy and unbiased manner is not known. OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to collate and describe the trustworthiness and political slant or bias of web-based information about abortion safety and risks of depression and infertility following abortion. METHODS We performed a cross-sectional study of internet websites using 3 search topics: (1) is abortion safe?, (2) does abortion cause depression?, and (3) does abortion cause infertility? We used the Google Adwords tool to identify the search terms most associated with those topics and Google’s search engine to generate databases of websites related to each topic. We then classified and rated each website in terms of content slant (pro-choice, neutral, anti-choice), clarity of slant (obvious, in-between, or difficult/can’t tell), trustworthiness (rating scale of 1-5, 5=most trustworthy), type (forum, feature, scholarly article, resource page, news article, blog, or video), and top-level domain (.com, .net, .org, .edu, .gov, or international domain). We compared website characteristics by search topic (safety, depression, or infertility) using bivariate tests. We summarized trustworthiness using the median and IQR, and we used box-and-whisker plots to visually compare trustworthiness by slant and domain type. RESULTS Our search methods yielded a total of 111, 120, and 85 unique sites for safety, depression, and infertility, respectively. Of all the sites (n=316), 57.3% (181/316) were neutral, 35.4% (112/316) were anti-choice, and 7.3% (23/316) were pro-choice. The median trustworthiness score was 2.7 (IQR 1.7-3.7), which did not differ significantly across topics (<i>P</i>=.409). Anti-choice sites were less trustworthy (median score 1.3, IQR 1.0-1.7) than neutral (median score 3.3, IQR 2.7-4.0) and pro-choice (median score 3.7, IQR 3.3-4.3) sites. Anti-choice sites were also more likely to have slant clarity that was “difficult to tell” (41/112, 36.6%) compared with neutral (25/181, 13.8%) or pro-choice (4/23, 17.4%; <i>P</i>&lt;.001) sites. A negative search term used for the topic of safety (eg, “risks”) produced sites with lower trustworthiness scores than search terms with the word “safety” (median score 1.7 versus 3.7, respectively; <i>P</i>&lt;.001). CONCLUSIONS People seeking information about the safety and potential risks of abortion are likely to encounter a substantial amount of untrustworthy and slanted/biased abortion information. Anti-choice sites are prevalent, often difficult to identify as anti-choice, and less trustworthy than neutral or pro-choice sites. Web searches may lead the public to believe abortion is riskier than it is.

scholarly journals The Abortion Web Ecosystem: Cross-Sectional Analysis of Trustworthiness and Bias

10.2196/20619 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (10) ◽  
pp. e20619
Author(s):  
Leo Han ◽  
Emily R Boniface ◽  
Lisa Yin Han ◽  
Jonathan Albright ◽  
Nora Doty ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Depressive Disorders ◽  
Rating Scale ◽  
Primary Source ◽  
News Article ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Search Term ◽  
Median Score ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Search Terms ◽  
Pro Choice

Background People use the internet as a primary source for learning about medical procedures and their associated safety profiles and risks. Although abortion is one of the most common procedures worldwide among women in their reproductive years, it is controversial and highly politicized. Substantial scientific evidence demonstrates that abortion is safe and does not increase a woman’s future risk for depressive disorders or infertility. The extent to which information found on the internet reflects these medical facts in a trustworthy and unbiased manner is not known. Objective The purpose of this study was to collate and describe the trustworthiness and political slant or bias of web-based information about abortion safety and risks of depression and infertility following abortion. Methods We performed a cross-sectional study of internet websites using 3 search topics: (1) is abortion safe?, (2) does abortion cause depression?, and (3) does abortion cause infertility? We used the Google Adwords tool to identify the search terms most associated with those topics and Google’s search engine to generate databases of websites related to each topic. We then classified and rated each website in terms of content slant (pro-choice, neutral, anti-choice), clarity of slant (obvious, in-between, or difficult/can’t tell), trustworthiness (rating scale of 1-5, 5=most trustworthy), type (forum, feature, scholarly article, resource page, news article, blog, or video), and top-level domain (.com, .net, .org, .edu, .gov, or international domain). We compared website characteristics by search topic (safety, depression, or infertility) using bivariate tests. We summarized trustworthiness using the median and IQR, and we used box-and-whisker plots to visually compare trustworthiness by slant and domain type. Results Our search methods yielded a total of 111, 120, and 85 unique sites for safety, depression, and infertility, respectively. Of all the sites (n=316), 57.3% (181/316) were neutral, 35.4% (112/316) were anti-choice, and 7.3% (23/316) were pro-choice. The median trustworthiness score was 2.7 (IQR 1.7-3.7), which did not differ significantly across topics (P=.409). Anti-choice sites were less trustworthy (median score 1.3, IQR 1.0-1.7) than neutral (median score 3.3, IQR 2.7-4.0) and pro-choice (median score 3.7, IQR 3.3-4.3) sites. Anti-choice sites were also more likely to have slant clarity that was “difficult to tell” (41/112, 36.6%) compared with neutral (25/181, 13.8%) or pro-choice (4/23, 17.4%; P<.001) sites. A negative search term used for the topic of safety (eg, “risks”) produced sites with lower trustworthiness scores than search terms with the word “safety” (median score 1.7 versus 3.7, respectively; P<.001). Conclusions People seeking information about the safety and potential risks of abortion are likely to encounter a substantial amount of untrustworthy and slanted/biased abortion information. Anti-choice sites are prevalent, often difficult to identify as anti-choice, and less trustworthy than neutral or pro-choice sites. Web searches may lead the public to believe abortion is riskier than it is.

scholarly journals Quality Information about Uterine Fibroids on the Internet

2018 ◽  
Vol 40 (09) ◽  
pp. 547-553 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniela Melo ◽  
Pedro Jallad ◽  
Luiz Brito
Keyword(s):  
English Language ◽  
Uterine Fibroids ◽  
Brazilian Portuguese ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Search Term ◽  
Median Score ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Lay Women ◽  
Test Correlation

Objective There are no published studies analyzing the quality of the information for lay women on the Internet regarding uterine fibroids. The accuracy of the provided material is also unknown. Thus, we have performed a cross-sectional study with 381 websites in the English and Brazilian Portuguese languages between May and December 2017. Methods Two investigators performed the analysis, and the Cohen kappa coefficient was calculated to analyze the agreement between them. Search terms (uterine fibroids and derivatives) in the English and Brazilian Portuguese languages were used. The accuracy was analyzed by a 10-item checklist created based on the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM), National Institutes of Health (NIH) and European Menopause and Andropause Society (EMAS) consensuses about uterine fibroids. The item–test correlation and the intraclass coefficient were performed in the 16 questions from the DISCERN instrument, which was designed to measure the quality of health information on the Internet. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) measurements were performed for the independent variables and the DISCERN/accuracy scores. Results Google was the most used search engine, and uterine fibroid was the search term that generated most of the analyzed material. The median score for accuracy in all websites was 5 out of 10, and the median score of the DISCERN instrument was 38 out of 80. The top-scoring sites in the English language were derived from scientific organizations and federal governments, and they regarded the DISCERN score (The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists [ACOG], the Food and Drug Administration [FDA]) and the accuracy criteria (NIH, and FDA). On the other hand, in the Brazilian Portuguese language, the highest scores in both instruments were from magazines or physician's blogs. The Cronbach α test showed a higher correlation (0.77–0.79) between the sites and DISCERN; however, the item–test correlation varied from 0.39 to 0.56. Conclusion There is a need to improve the quality of the information regarding uterine fibroids for lay women.

scholarly journals Correlation between perimenopausal syndromes and depression in nurses at Sanglah General Hospital

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 14-17
Author(s):  
Ni Wayan Dewi Putriny Asih ◽  
Cokorda Bagus Jaya Lesmana ◽  
Anak Ayu Sri Wahyuni ◽  
Ni Ketut Sri Diniari ◽  
Luh Nyoman Alit Aryani
Keyword(s):  
General Hospital ◽  
Depressive Disorders ◽  
Rating Scale ◽  
First Year ◽  
Moderate Degree ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Significance Level ◽  
Mild Degree ◽  
Sexual Symptoms ◽  
Depression Measurement

Background: Perimenopause covers the period immediately before the menopause and the first year after the last menstrual period. In addition to the changes in the menstrual cycle, women in the perimenopause phase often report a number of perimenopausal complaints and depressive disorders. This study aims to determine the prevalence of perimenopausal complaints and depression experienced in nurses at Sanglah General Hospital. Methods: The study uses a cross-sectional analytical. The measurement of perimenopause complaints uses the Menopause Rating Scale (MRS) questionnaire and the depression measurement uses the Beck Depression Inventory-II questionnaire (BDI-II). The data are analyzed descriptively, it uses the Fisher test and linear regression test with significance level p <0.05. Results: Nurses who have perimenopausal complaints are 62.7%. Besides, depression is experienced by 23.8% of nurses who have perimenopausal complaints. The complained somatic symptoms with a mild degree are 50% and moderate degree is 40%. While the urogenital sexual symptoms with a moderate degree are 60%, and mild and severe degrees are 20%. Conclusion: This study shows the relationship between perimenopausal complaints and the depression of the nurses in Sanglah General Hospital. Therefore, it is necessary to hold an early detection of depression prevention by screening perimenopausal complaints.

scholarly journals Availability Of Literature On Engineering Ethics In The Internet

2012 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yusof Ismail, Suhaimi Mhd Sarif
Keyword(s):  
Search Engines ◽  
Engineering Students ◽  
Engineering Ethics ◽  
Training And Development ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Search Term ◽  
Internet Search ◽  
Search Terms ◽  
Search For Information ◽  
And Training

Internet is becoming a popular tool among career-oriented people. Among professionals, some of the engineers use the Internet in their work to search for information. The study is carried out to ascertain comparative availability of the materials on ethics and engineers in four top Internet search engines (ISE’s). Four ISE’s were accessed on 2 February 2011, from 2.21 p.m. to 4.21 p.m. [Gombak Time] using a combination of selected search terms: education, engineer, engineering, ethics, Islam, professional, research, and training. The search results or hits produced by the selected ISE’s were analyzed using a specially created instrument/format. The study computes relative ratios of the coverage of selected terms in relation to the number of hits for selected terms within each ISE. The ratios are obtained by dividing the hits for a search term or combination into the total hits within each ISE. The results of the analysis reveal that the ISE’s contain the highest frequency of materials on engineers and ethics. The findings suggest to engineering students and practitioners of varying capabilities among the ISE’s used in the study to learn about engineering ethics. Limitations of the study and suggestions for further research are included in the study.   ABSTRAK: Internet menjadi alat yang popular di kalangan staf yang berorientasikan kerjaya. Di kalangan profesional, para jurutera menggunakan Internet untuk mencari maklumat dalam kerja-kerja mereka. Kajian ini dijalankan untuk menentukan ketersediaan perbandingan bahan-bahan mengenai etika dan jurutera dalam empat enjin carian Internet (ISE) teratas. Beberapa ISE dicapai pada 2 Februari 2011, di antara 2.21 petang sehingga 4.21 petang [waktu Gombak] menggunakan gabungan terma carian yang dipilih: pendidikan, jurutera, kejuruteraan, etika, Islam, profesional, penyelidikan, dan latihan. Keputusan carian atau ‘hits’ yang dihasilkan oleh ISE terpilih telah dianalisis dengan menggunakan instrumen/format yang direka khas. Kajian itu mengira nisbah relatif liputan terma-terma terpilih tersebut dengan jumlah ‘hits’ bagi kesemua terma bagi setiap ISE. Nisbah diperolehi dengan membahagikan ‘hits’ bagi istilah carian atau gabungan istilah dengan jumlah ‘hits’ dalam setiap ISE. Keputusan analisis menunjukkan ISE yang mengandungi kekerapan tertinggi bahan-bahan berkaitan dengan jurutera dan etika. Hasil kajian menyarankan kepada pelajar-pelajar dan pengamal kejuruteraan bahawa wujud keupayaan yang berbeza-beza di kalangan ISE berhubung dengan potensi bahan-bahan berkaitan etika kejuruteraan. Batasan kajian dan cadangan untuk penyelidikan selanjutnya dimasukkan dalam kajian ini.  Keywords-engineering ethics; internet search engines; literature; training and development

Prevalence and Associated Factors of Depressive Disorder in Caregivers of Individuals With Parkinson Disease

2020 ◽  
pp. 089198872093335
Author(s):  
Yu Lee ◽  
Yu-Jie Chiou ◽  
Chi-Fa Hung ◽  
Yung-Yee Chang ◽  
Ying-Fa Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Depressive Disorder ◽  
Parkinson Disease ◽  
Psychiatric Diagnosis ◽  
Associated Factors ◽  
Depressive Disorders ◽  
Rating Scale ◽  
Medical Center ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Resilience Scale ◽  
Brief Fatigue Inventory

Objective: Parkinson disease (PD) is a debilitating neurodegenerative disease. Caring for an individual with PD can have a variety of negative physical and psychological effects on caregivers which may challenge their ability to continue in their caretaking role. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence and associated factors of depressive disorders in caregivers of individuals with PD using standardized instruments. Methods: This study used a cross-sectional design with consecutive sampling. Study participants were recruited from the neurological ward or neurological outpatient clinic of a medical center from August 2018 to July 2019. Caregivers of persons with PD were enrolled and assessed using the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview, Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale, Beck Hopelessness Scale, Brief Fatigue Inventory, Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale, and Big Five Inventory-10. Results: Of the 162 caregivers that completed the study, 67.3% (n = 109) were females. The most common psychiatric diagnosis was depressive disorder (11.1%), followed by insomnia disorder (7.4%) and anxiety disorder not otherwise specified (4.3%); 28% of the caregivers had a psychiatric diagnosis. Using logistic regression analysis, it was found that duration of caregiving (odds ratio [OR] = 1.28; 95% CI, 1.05-1.58), severity of anxiety (OR = 1.86; 95% CI, 1.36-2.53), and severity of fatigue (OR = 1.08; 95% CI, 1.01-1.16) were 3 significant associated factors for the development of depression. Conclusion: Depression was the most prevalent psychiatric diagnosis in caregivers of people with PD. Early diagnosis of these caregivers is crucial to the offering of suitable support and treatment and might improve caregivers’ quality of life.

scholarly journals Quality of Health Information on the Internet for Prostate Cancer

2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dwayne T. S. Chang ◽  
Robert Abouassaly ◽  
Nathan Lawrentschuk
Keyword(s):  
Prostate Cancer ◽  
Health Information ◽  
Health Resources ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Search Term ◽  
Search Terms ◽  
The Difference ◽  
The Government ◽  
Google Search

Introduction. To compare (1) the quality of prostate cancer health information on the Internet, (2) the difference in quality between websites appearing earlier or later in the search, and (3) the sources of sponsorship for each of these websites. Materials and methods. The top 150 listed websites on the Google search engine for each of the 11 search terms related to prostate cancer were analysed. Quality was assessed on whether the website conforms to the principles of the Health On the Net Foundation. Each of these websites was then reviewed to determine the main source of sponsorship. Statistical analysis was performed to determine if the proportion of HON accreditation varied among the different cohorts of listed websites and among the 11 search terms used. Results. In total, 1650 websites were analysed. Among these, 10.5% websites were HON-accredited. The proportion of HON-accredited websites for individual search terms ranged from 3.3% to 19.3%. In comparison with the search term of “Prostate cancer,” four search terms had statistically significant odds ratio of the rate of HON accreditation. Websites 51–150 were statistically less likely to have HON accreditation than websites 1–50. The top three website sponsors were journal/universities (28.8%), commercial (28.1%), and physician/surgeon (26.9%). Conclusions. The lack of validated and unbiased websites for prostate cancer is concerning especially with increasing use of the Internet for health information. Websites sponsored or managed by the government and national departments were most likely to provide impartial health information for prostate cancer. We need to help our patients identify valid and unbiased online health resources.

scholarly journals Can Users Search Trends Predict People Scares or Disease Breakout? An Examination of Infectious Skin Diseases in the United States

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 117863372092835
Author(s):  
Rand Obeidat ◽  
Izzat Alsmadi ◽  
Qanita Bani Bakr ◽  
Laith Obeidat
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Skin Diseases ◽  
The United States ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Search Term ◽  
Care Providers ◽  
Search Queries ◽  
Additional Tool ◽  
Search Terms ◽  
The Impact

Background: In health and medicine, people heavily use the Internet to search for information about symptoms, diseases, and treatments. As such, the Internet information can simulate expert medical doctors, pharmacists, and other health care providers. Aim: This article aims to evaluate a dataset of search terms to determine whether search queries and terms can be used to reliably predict skin disease breakouts. Furthermore, the authors propose and evaluate a model to decide when to declare a particular month as Epidemic at the US national level. Methods: A Model was designed to distinguish a breakout in skin diseases based on the number of monthly discovered cases. To apply this model, the authors correlated Google Trends of popular search terms with monthly reported Rubella and Measles cases from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Regressions and decision trees were used to determine the impact of different terms to trigger the occurrence of epidemic classes. Results: Results showed that the volume of search keywords for Rubella and Measles rises when the volume of those reported diseases rises. Results also implied that the overall process was successful and should be repeated with other diseases. Such process can trigger different actions or activities to be taken when a certain month is declared as “Epidemic.” Furthermore, this research has shown great interest for vaccination against Measles and Rubella. Conclusions: The findings suggest that the search queries and keyword trends can be truly reliable to be used for the prediction of disease outbreaks and some other related knowledge extraction applications. Also search-term surveillance can provide an additional tool for infectious disease surveillance. Future research needs to re-apply the model used in this article, and researchers need to question whether characterizing the epidemiology of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic waves in United States can be done through search queries and keyword trends.

Information-Seeking on the Internet

Crisis ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
pp. 211-219 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vinod Singaravelu ◽  
Anne Stewart ◽  
Joanna Adams ◽  
Sue Simkin ◽  
Keith Hawton
Keyword(s):  
At Risk ◽  
Young People ◽  
Information Seeking ◽  
Significant Proportion ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Search Terms ◽  
Specific Advice ◽  
Restriction Sites ◽  
Self Harm ◽  
Negative Tone

Abstract. Background: The Internet is used by young people at risk of self-harm to communicate, find information, and obtain support. Aims: We aimed to identify and analyze websites potentially accessed by these young people. Method: Six search terms, relating to self-harm/suicide and depression, were input into four search engines. Websites were analyzed for access, content/purpose, and tone. Results: In all, 314 websites were included in the analysis. Most could be accessed without restriction. Sites accessed by self-harm/suicide search terms were mostly positive or preventive in tone, whereas sites accessed by the term ways to kill yourself tended to have a negative tone. Information about self-harm methods was common with specific advice on how to self-harm in 15.8% of sites, encouragement of self-harm in 7.0%, and evocative images of self-harm/suicide in 20.7%. Advice on how to get help was given in 56.1% of sites. Conclusion: Websites relating to suicide or self-harm are easily accessed. Many sites are potentially helpful. However, a significant proportion of sites are potentially harmful through normalizing or encouraging self-harm. Enquiry regarding Internet use should be routinely included while assessing young people at risk.

The Impact of a Highly Publicized Celebrity Suicide on Suicide-Related Online Information Seeking

Crisis ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 38 (3) ◽  
pp. 207-209 ◽  
Author(s):  
Florian Arendt ◽  
Sebastian Scherr
Keyword(s):  
Suicide Prevention ◽  
Information Seeking ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Online Information ◽  
Search Queries ◽  
Related Information ◽  
Search Terms ◽  
Celebrity Suicide ◽  
Online Information Seeking ◽  
The Impact

Abstract. Background: Research has already acknowledged the importance of the Internet in suicide prevention as search engines such as Google are increasingly used in seeking both helpful and harmful suicide-related information. Aims: We aimed to assess the impact of a highly publicized suicide by a Hollywood actor on suicide-related online information seeking. Method: We tested the impact of the highly publicized suicide of Robin Williams on volumes of suicide-related search queries. Results: Both harmful and helpful search terms increased immediately after the actor's suicide, with a substantial jump of harmful queries. Limitations: The study has limitations (e.g., possible validity threats of the query share measure, use of ambiguous search terms). Conclusion: Online suicide prevention efforts should try to increase online users' awareness of and motivation to seek help, for which Google's own helpline box could play an even more crucial role in the future.

EARLY RECOGNIZATION OF THE CHILDREN WITH ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER BY VANDERBILT ADHD RATING SCALE FOR TEACHERS AND PARENTS

2019 ◽  
pp. 85-91
Author(s):  
Dinh Duong Le ◽  
Van Thang Vo ◽  
Thi Mai Nguyen ◽  
Thi Han Vo ◽  
Huu Chau Duc Nguyen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder ◽  
High Risk ◽  
Attention Deficit ◽  
Primary Schools ◽  
Rating Scale ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Hyperactivity Disorder ◽  
Teachers And Parents ◽  
Key Words Adhd

Objectives: The study aims to explore the prevalence of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and to examine the associated factors with ADHD among primary students by Vanderbilt ADHD rating scale for teacher and parents. Methods: A cross-sectional study design was conducted in 564 students who selected randomly in 4 primary schools in Hue city. Vanderbilt ADHD rating scale for parents and teachers were applied to evaluate the ADHD of children over 6 months ago. Results: The overall prevalence of children who had high risk with ADHD was 4.1% (95%CI: 2.44 - 5.72), including 4.6% and 4.8% in the rating of teachers and parents, respectively. Male was more likely to have ADHD than female (OR adj: 4.64 (95%CI: 1.53 - 14.05) and lack of closely friend (OR adj: 5.11 (95% CI: 2.13 - 12.24). Conclusion: Vanderbilt ADHD diagnosis rating scale for teachers and parents can be used to early recognization children with a high risk of ADHD. Key words: ADHD, Vanderbilt, ratings scale, teacher, parent, children

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