Characterizing Internet searchers of smoking cessation information
Characterizing Internet searchers of smoking cessation information
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DOI：
10.2196/jmir.8.3.e17
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发表时间：
2006-07-01
影响因子：
7.4
通讯作者：
Graham, Amanda L.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
Cobb, Nathan K.;Graham, Amanda L.
背景：互联网是提供循证戒烟治疗的可行渠道，有可能使大量人口对降低吸烟率产生影响。互联网上对戒烟信息和支持的需求很高。大约7%(1020万)的美国成年网民搜索过戒烟信息。关于这些人，他们的吸烟状况，他们在互联网上寻求的戒烟服务类型，以及这些戒烟信息的搜索频率，人们知之甚少。目的：本研究的主要目标是确定在互联网上搜索戒烟信息的个人的特征，以确定适当的分诊和治疗策略。第二个目标是使用公开的搜索引擎数据估计戒烟信息的搜索率。方法：我们招募了从搜索引擎查询结果中点击领先戒烟网站(QuitNet)链接的个人。个人在访问QuitNet主页之前被“拦截”，并被邀请参与这项研究。接受邀请的人被送到一项关于人口统计数据、吸烟特征、对特定戒烟服务的偏好以及互联网搜索模式的在线调查。为了确定我们样本的概括性，我们检查了关于搜索引擎使用模式、市场份额和关键字排名的国家数据集。结果：在为期10天的研究期间，2265人被招募，29%(N=655)的人做出了回应。在这些人中，59%是女性，总体上倾向于比之前所描述的普通互联网人口年轻。大多数受访者(76%)是目前吸烟者；17%的人在过去7天内戒烟，7%的人在7天前戒烟。略多于一半的活跃吸烟者(53%)表示，他们计划在未来30天内戒烟。吸烟者更有可能寻求有关如何戒烟和药物治疗的信息；曾经吸烟者对如何应对戒烟更感兴趣。所有参与者都认为戒烟信息和个人定制的信息更有用，而对电话咨询、专家支持或同伴支持几乎没有兴趣。来自大型搜索引擎的公开数据显示，每年有400万美国人搜索戒烟资源。结论：这项研究增加了关于在互联网上搜索戒烟信息的个人的有限数据，支持先前对人口规模的估计，并表明这些人处于积极戒烟干预和积极预防复发努力的适当阶段。继续开发和评估在线干预措施是必要的，寻求促进戒烟的组织应该仔细评估互联网作为一种可能的治疗方式和进入其他传统计划的门户。
Background: The Internet is a viable channel to deliver evidence-based smoking cessation treatment that has the potential to make a large population impact on reducing smoking prevalence. There is high demand for smoking cessation information and support on the Internet. Approximately 7% (10.2 million) of adult American Internet users have searched for information on quitting smoking. Little is known about these individuals, their smoking status, what type of cessation services they are seeking on the Internet, or how frequently these searches for cessation information are conducted.Objective: The primary goal of this study was to characterize individuals who search for smoking cessation information on the Internet to determine appropriate triage and treatment strategies. The secondary goal was to estimate the incidence of searches for cessation information using publicly available search engine data.Methods: We recruited individuals who clicked on a link to a leading smoking cessation website (QuitNet) from within the results of a search engine query. Individuals were "intercepted" before seeing the QuitNet home page and were invited to participate in the study. Those accepting the invitation were routed to an online survey about demographics, smoking characteristics, preferences for specific cessation services, and Internet search patterns. To determine the generalizability of our sample, national datasets on search engine usage patterns, market share, and keyword rankings were examined. These datasets were then used to estimate the number of queries for smoking cessation information each year.Results: During the 10-day study period, 2265 individuals were recruited and 29% (N = 655) responded. Of these, 59% were female and overall tended to be younger than the previously characterized general Internet population. Most (76%) respondents were current smokers; 17% had quit within the last 7 days, and 7% had quit more than 7 days ago. Slightly more than half of active smokers (53%) indicated that they were planning to quit in the next 30 days. Smokers were more likely to seek information on how to quit and on medications; former smokers were more interested in how to cope with withdrawal. All participants rated withdrawal information and individually tailored information as being more useful, while displaying little interest in telephone counseling, expert support, or peer support. Publicly available data from large search engines suggest that 4 million Americans search for resources on smoking cessation each year.Conclusions: This study adds to the limited data available on individuals who search for smoking cessation information on the Internet, supports the prior estimates of the size of the population, and indicates that these individuals are in appropriate stages for both active cessation interventions and aggressive relapse prevention efforts. Continued development and evaluation of online interventions is warranted, and organizations seeking to promote cessation should carefully evaluate the Internet as a possible modality for treatment and as a gateway to other traditional programs.