Healthcare reform information-seeking: Relationships with uncertainty, uncertainty discrepancy, and health self-efficacy

This exploratory study examines information-seeking about the 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (i.e. healthcare reform) in relation to the potential barriers of uncertainty, uncertainty discrepancy, and low health self-efficacy. Adult United States participants completed an anonymous online survey about their perceptions and understanding of healthcare reform. Results confirmed recent literature, suggesting a complex relationship between information-seeking and uncertainty. Specifically, for this sample, significant positive relationships were observed between information-seeking about healthcare reform and uncertainty, uncertainty discrepancy, health self-efficacy. Further, uncertainty discrepancy was the potential barrier that accounted for the most variance in predicting information-seeking. Implications of these findings for improving public understanding of healthcare reform are discussed.