Challenges that health professionals face to evaluate and trust online health information: the role of conscientiousness

The current research aimed to investigate how health professionals evaluate online health information, with a focus on their personality trait of conscientiousness. The study population consisted of a random sample of students and faculty members from two health-related faculties at the Tehran University of Medical Sciences. The research identified several challenges in evaluating health information, including difficulties in determining information quality and the presence of inaccurate information. The participants considered objectivity, currency, and authority as the most important criteria for assessing the quality of health information. Additionally, the study found a significant correlation between conscientiousness and the assessment of credibility. Changing levels of conscientiousness influenced participants' reasons for rejecting or trusting health information. It is worth noting that participants paid less attention to factors such as topic coverage and accuracy, despite their importance. These findings can be used to conduct more comprehensive studies in healthcare and inform policymaking in the context of online health information delivery, including social media platforms. To enhance the understanding of health professionals' evaluation of online health information, future research could consider expanding the sample to include a more diverse range of participants. Additionally, conducting comparative studies on different sources of health information, such as websites and social media platforms, could provide valuable insights for healthcare professionals and policymakers.