Richelle Oakley DaSouza

In the original publication (Chaudhary & DaSouza, 2024), there was an error regarding the Institutional Review Board Statement

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the adoption of wearable health technologies (WHTs), reshaping patterns of use and motivations. This study applies Social Cognitive Theory and Digital Divide frameworks to compare pre- and post-pandemic determinants of WHT adoption using survey-weighted logistic regressions and subgroup analyses by race and gender. Findings show that while personal agency and social context remain relevant, structural factors such as smart device ownership, insurance coverage, and digital health integration became more decisive after the pandemic. The influence of education declined, and income-based disparities widened, signaling a shift from skill-based divides to access-based divides. Demographic trends remained stable, although health-risk salience increased and equity patterns diverged. The results suggest that motivation and confidence alone are insufficient to influence WHT adoption. Material access and digital infrastructure now play a central role. Implications are discussed for temporally sensitive IS theory and inclusive technology design and policy.

Background: Electronic personal health records (ePHRs) hold significant potential to improve health management for older adults by enhancing access to medical information and facilitating communication with health care providers. However, usage remains low among individuals aged 65 and older. While existing research has identified barriers such as low self-efficacy, limited digital literacy, and usability challenges, the specific factors influencing the use of ePHRs among older adults are not yet fully understood. Objective: This study integrates the Aging and Technology framework with the Patient Technology Acceptance Model to examine key predictors of ePHR use among older adults, including age, education, issue involvement, performance expectancy, effort expectancy, and self-efficacy, while controlling for demographic factors such as gender, race, and income. Methods: This study utilizes data from the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS 5 cycle 3), which includes 532 respondents representing 13,136,180 US adults aged 65 years and older, after applying survey weights. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the factors influencing the frequency of ePHR access over the past 12 months. Results: The findings indicate that older adults with higher self-efficacy used ePHRs more frequently. Additionally, issue involvement, performance expectancy, and effort expectancy were positively associated with ePHR use. Notably, self-efficacy partially mediated the relationship between age and the frequency of ePHR use. Conclusions: These findings suggest that enhancing self-efficacy, improving usability, and increasing the perceived benefits of ePHRs are critical for boosting usage among older adults. The study underscores the need for targeted interventions to support older users, simplify digital interfaces, and provide accessible educational resources, ultimately contributing to better health outcomes and an improved quality of life for older adults.

Background: Despite its potential to predict and detect early cancer risks, genetic testing remains underused by the public. This study, guided by the health belief model (HBM), examined key factors influencing an individual’s willingness to undergo genetic testing for cancer, with a particular focus on gender, caregiver status, and participation in online social support groups. Objective: This study aimed to explore the factors that can influence the individual’s decision to undergo preventative genetic testing for cancer so that more informed action can be taken to encourage the individuals to engage in preventative health behavior. Methods: This study uses data collected from the 2020 Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS 5 Cycle 4), which included 2947 respondents representing 199,510,996 US adults aged 18 years and older. Multivariable logistic regression and survey-weighted generalized linear models were applied to examine the relationship between cancer genetic testing and caregiver status, participation in online support groups, gender, and constructs associated with the HBM, while controlling for sociodemographic and health-related characteristics. Results: Our findings show that women are more likely to undergo cancer genetic testing, with gender moderating the influence of perceived susceptibility (β=2.54, P=.03) and severity (β=0.94, P<.050) on testing decisions. In line with the HBM, perceived benefits (β=0.19, P=.03) and cues to action (β=2.86, P<.001) increase the likelihood of testing. Results also show that caregivers of patients with cancer (β=1.25, P=.04) and those actively participating in online health support groups (β=0.47, P=.04) are also more likely to engage in cancer genetic testing. Conclusions: Cancer remains a significant health challenge in the United States, with 1.8 million new cases and 606,520 deaths annually. Early detection is vital for treatment success. This study investigates factors influencing the decision to undergo genetic testing for cancer. The examination of caregiver status and online support groups as influencing factors, along with the HBM, provided a significant theoretical contribution to the health care research domain. Results indicated that caregivers and men should be directly targeted with messaging on genetic cancer screening as a proactive health behavior. Additionally, online support groups can promote early detection and encourage participation in genetic testing. Future research should further explore implementing proactive outreach strategies to encourage wider adoption of genetic testing for cancer.

BACKGROUND Electronic Personal Health Records (ePHRs) have significant potential to improve health management for older adults by enhancing access to medical information and communication with healthcare providers. However, usage remain low among individuals aged 65 and older. Existing research points to barriers such as low self-efficacy, digital literacy, and usability challenges, but the specific factors influencing ePHR use among the elderly are not fully understood. OBJECTIVE This study integrates the Aging and Technology framework and the Patient Technology Adoption Model to investigate key predictors of ePHR use, including age, education, issue involvement, performance expectancy, effort expectancy, and self-efficacy, while controlling for demographic factors such as gender, race, and income. METHODS This study uses data collected from the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS 5 Cycle 3) which includes 532 respondents representing 13,136,180 U.S. adults aged 65 and older when survey weights are utilized. The study uses structural equation modeling to analyze the frequency of ePHR access in the last 12 months. RESULTS Results show that older adults with higher self-efficacy used ePHRs more frequently, and factors such as issue involvement, performance expectancy, and effort expectancy positively influenced ePHR use. Interestingly, self-efficacy also partially mediates the impact of age on the frequency of ePHR use. CONCLUSIONS These findings suggest that improving self-efficacy, focusing on usability, and enhancing perceived benefits are critical for increasing ePHR usage among the elderly. The study underscores the need for targeted interventions to support elderly users, to simplify interfaces, and to provide educational resources, ultimately improving health outcomes and quality of life for older adults. CLINICALTRIAL NA

BACKGROUND Despite its potential to predict and detect early cancer risks, genetic testing remains underutilized by the public. This study, guided by the Health Belief Model, examined key factors influencing an individual’s willingness to undergo genetic testing for cancer, with a particular focus on gender, caregiver status, and participation in online social support groups. OBJECTIVE To identify the key variable that influences Preventative Cancer Genetic Testing Participation METHODS This study uses data collected from the 2020 Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS 5 Cycle 4) which includes 2,947 respondents representing 199,510,996 U.S. adults aged 18 and older. Multivariable logistic regression and Survey-Weighted Generalized Linear Models (svyglm) were applied to examine the relationship between cancer genetic testing and caregiver status, participation in online support groups, gender, and constructs associated with the Health Belief Model, while controlling for sociodemographic and health-related characteristics. RESULTS Our findings show that women are more likely to undergo cancer genetic testing, with gender moderating the influence of perceived susceptibility (β = 2.54, p < 0.05) and severity (β = 0.94, p < 0.05) on testing decisions. In line with the Health Belief Model, perceived benefits (β = 0.19, p < 0.05) and cues to action (β = 2.86, p < 0.001) increase the likelihood of testing. Results also show that caregivers of cancer patients (β = 1.25, p < 0.05) and those actively participating in online health support groups (β = 0.47, p < 0.05) are also more likely to engage in cancer genetic testing. CONCLUSIONS Cancer remains a significant health challenge in the U.S., with 1.8 million new cases and 606,520 deaths annually. Early detection is vital for treatment success. This study investigates factors influencing the decision to undergo genetic testing for cancer. Targeted campaigns, particularly in online support groups directed at men, can promote early detection and encourage participation in genetic testing. Future research should explore implementing proactive outreach strategies to encourage wider adoption of genetic testing for cancer. CLINICALTRIAL NA

As digital content increasingly moves away from free access, microtransactions may provide an alternative. There is a need for research on microtransactions as a general digital content payment mechanism. Businesses can capitalize on this technological advancement by expanding their paid digital content offerings without resorting to subscription-based services. This study examines a taxonomy for microtransactions based on consumer buying behavior, presents business models for microtransaction payment processing, and examines issues with its implementation. Data collected from 180 consumers were analyzed using quantitative and qualitative analyses to assess the receptiveness and perception of microtransactions. The results indicate that consumers are receptive to the concept of microtransactions and are willing to spend on five distinct digital content categories. This study concludes with a discussion of issues that consumers foresee with digital content microtransactions and implications for interested businesses.

As eCommerce has become widespread, the challenge of successfully navigating the returns process has grown perilous. The product returns issue is even more difficult for microenterprises that sell unique or custom products with fewer resources. The authors examined the impact of the antecedents of return policy leniency, specifically economic and social success factors. Using a web crawler over a 24-week period, the authors collected and analyzed data for a sample of 781 shops from Etsy, an eCommerce platform. Results indicate that the well-studied factor of sales, in addition to a new social factor – community dialogue – impacts an Etsy shop's return policy leniency.