ABS TRACT Objective: Noise-induced hearing loss is increasingly prevalent among young populations because of exposure to loud music through leisure activities such as concerts, discotheques, clubs, and sporting events, as well as recreational activities and personal music devices.Regulating attitudes toward noise among young adults, as a primary prevention strategy, will promote the adoption of protective behaviors against noise.The aim of this study is to examine the relationship between electronic health literacy and attitudes toward noise among young adults.Material and Methods: This study was conducted with 175 young adult undergraduate students.Participants completed the eHealth Literacy Scale (E-HEALS) and the Youth Attitudes to Noise Scale (YANS-Tr), and correlations between the scale scores were examined.Results: Of all students, 42 (24%) demonstrated a pronoise attitude, 45 (25.7%) demonstrated an anti-noise attitude, and 88 (50.3%) exhibited a neutral attitude toward noise.A significant negative correlation was found between the total E-HEALS score and the mean scores of YANS-Tr Factor 1 (attitudes toward noise associated with youth culture) (r s =-0.20, p=0.010) and Factor 4 (attitudes that influence the sound environment) (r s =-0.19, p=0.012).Conclusion: This study demonstrates that higher levels of electronic health literacy may play a potential role in fostering anti-noise attitudes among young adults.The findings of this study are expected to guide future research aimed at enhancing hearing health awareness and developing intervention programs on noise protection among young adults.
Polat et al. (Thu,) studied this question.