Influence of the Internet on Health Seeking Behaviors of Youths in Ekiti State, Nigeria

Adeosun Foluke Odunayo; Folayan Opeoluwa Florence

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ss.20190805.20

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Influence of the Internet on Health Seeking Behaviors of Youths in Ekiti State, Nigeria

Adeosun Foluke Odunayo, Folayan Opeoluwa Florence

Published in Social Sciences (Volume 8, Issue 5)

Received: 11 June 2019 Accepted: 8 July 2019 Published: 15 October 2019

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Abstract

The use of online resources to locate health-related information is known to be increasing among Nigeria youths; sadly, not enough studies that investigates the influence of the internet on health seeking behaviors of Nigeria youths have been done. This study therefore investigates the influence of the internet on health seeking behaviors of youths in Ekiti-state, Nigeria, examines the extent to which the internet provides answers to health related questions among the youths, determines the perception of Nigeria youths on internet’s influence on health seeking among them, and ultimately, this study finds out whether the use of internet increases or decreases self-medication among Nigerian youths. A standardized nine-question survey on Internet use and health seeking behavior was given to 300 youths. A review of the literature is also included. It was discovered that out of 300 responses received, 203 youths (67.7%) reported ever consulting the internet to find health information. 194 (64.6%) youths consult the internet for answers to health problems before thinking of consulting a doctor or a caregiver. A large number of the youths (93.1%) follow the online physician advice more closely by practicing self-medication. A total of 191 (94%) youths submitted that the internet influences their behavior of health seeking. Conclusively, the tests of hypothesis show a significant relationship between the use of internet and health seeking behaviors of youths also between the use of internet and self-medication among youths in Ekiti- State, Nigeria.

Published in	Social Sciences (Volume 8, Issue 5)
DOI	10.11648/j.ss.20190805.20
Page(s)	282-288
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2019. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Internet, Youth, Health Seeking Behavior, Self-medication

References

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APA Style

Adeosun Foluke Odunayo, Folayan Opeoluwa Florence. (2019). Influence of the Internet on Health Seeking Behaviors of Youths in Ekiti State, Nigeria. Social Sciences, 8(5), 282-288. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ss.20190805.20

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ACS Style

Adeosun Foluke Odunayo; Folayan Opeoluwa Florence. Influence of the Internet on Health Seeking Behaviors of Youths in Ekiti State, Nigeria. Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(5), 282-288. doi: 10.11648/j.ss.20190805.20

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AMA Style

Adeosun Foluke Odunayo, Folayan Opeoluwa Florence. Influence of the Internet on Health Seeking Behaviors of Youths in Ekiti State, Nigeria. Soc Sci. 2019;8(5):282-288. doi: 10.11648/j.ss.20190805.20

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@article{10.11648/j.ss.20190805.20,
  author = {Adeosun Foluke Odunayo and Folayan Opeoluwa Florence},
  title = {Influence of the Internet on Health Seeking Behaviors of Youths in Ekiti State, Nigeria},
  journal = {Social Sciences},
  volume = {8},
  number = {5},
  pages = {282-288},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ss.20190805.20},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ss.20190805.20},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ss.20190805.20},
  abstract = {The use of online resources to locate health-related information is known to be increasing among Nigeria youths; sadly, not enough studies that investigates the influence of the internet on health seeking behaviors of Nigeria youths have been done. This study therefore investigates the influence of the internet on health seeking behaviors of youths in Ekiti-state, Nigeria, examines the extent to which the internet provides answers to health related questions among the youths, determines the perception of Nigeria youths on internet’s influence on health seeking among them, and ultimately, this study finds out whether the use of internet increases or decreases self-medication among Nigerian youths. A standardized nine-question survey on Internet use and health seeking behavior was given to 300 youths. A review of the literature is also included. It was discovered that out of 300 responses received, 203 youths (67.7%) reported ever consulting the internet to find health information. 194 (64.6%) youths consult the internet for answers to health problems before thinking of consulting a doctor or a caregiver. A large number of the youths (93.1%) follow the online physician advice more closely by practicing self-medication. A total of 191 (94%) youths submitted that the internet influences their behavior of health seeking. Conclusively, the tests of hypothesis show a significant relationship between the use of internet and health seeking behaviors of youths also between the use of internet and self-medication among youths in Ekiti- State, Nigeria.},
 year = {2019}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Influence of the Internet on Health Seeking Behaviors of Youths in Ekiti State, Nigeria
AU  - Adeosun Foluke Odunayo
AU  - Folayan Opeoluwa Florence
Y1  - 2019/10/15
PY  - 2019
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ss.20190805.20
DO  - 10.11648/j.ss.20190805.20
T2  - Social Sciences
JF  - Social Sciences
JO  - Social Sciences
SP  - 282
EP  - 288
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2326-988X
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AB  - The use of online resources to locate health-related information is known to be increasing among Nigeria youths; sadly, not enough studies that investigates the influence of the internet on health seeking behaviors of Nigeria youths have been done. This study therefore investigates the influence of the internet on health seeking behaviors of youths in Ekiti-state, Nigeria, examines the extent to which the internet provides answers to health related questions among the youths, determines the perception of Nigeria youths on internet’s influence on health seeking among them, and ultimately, this study finds out whether the use of internet increases or decreases self-medication among Nigerian youths. A standardized nine-question survey on Internet use and health seeking behavior was given to 300 youths. A review of the literature is also included. It was discovered that out of 300 responses received, 203 youths (67.7%) reported ever consulting the internet to find health information. 194 (64.6%) youths consult the internet for answers to health problems before thinking of consulting a doctor or a caregiver. A large number of the youths (93.1%) follow the online physician advice more closely by practicing self-medication. A total of 191 (94%) youths submitted that the internet influences their behavior of health seeking. Conclusively, the tests of hypothesis show a significant relationship between the use of internet and health seeking behaviors of youths also between the use of internet and self-medication among youths in Ekiti- State, Nigeria.
VL  - 8
IS  - 5
ER  -

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Author Information

Adeosun Foluke Odunayo

Department of Sociology, College of Social and Management Sciences, Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria
Folayan Opeoluwa Florence

Department of Business Management and Entrepreneurship, College of Social and Management Sciences, Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria

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Plain Text BibTeX RIS

APA Style

Adeosun Foluke Odunayo, Folayan Opeoluwa Florence. (2019). Influence of the Internet on Health Seeking Behaviors of Youths in Ekiti State, Nigeria. Social Sciences, 8(5), 282-288. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ss.20190805.20

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ACS Style

Adeosun Foluke Odunayo; Folayan Opeoluwa Florence. Influence of the Internet on Health Seeking Behaviors of Youths in Ekiti State, Nigeria. Soc. Sci. 2019, 8(5), 282-288. doi: 10.11648/j.ss.20190805.20

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AMA Style

Adeosun Foluke Odunayo, Folayan Opeoluwa Florence. Influence of the Internet on Health Seeking Behaviors of Youths in Ekiti State, Nigeria. Soc Sci. 2019;8(5):282-288. doi: 10.11648/j.ss.20190805.20

Copy | Download

@article{10.11648/j.ss.20190805.20,
  author = {Adeosun Foluke Odunayo and Folayan Opeoluwa Florence},
  title = {Influence of the Internet on Health Seeking Behaviors of Youths in Ekiti State, Nigeria},
  journal = {Social Sciences},
  volume = {8},
  number = {5},
  pages = {282-288},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ss.20190805.20},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ss.20190805.20},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ss.20190805.20},
  abstract = {The use of online resources to locate health-related information is known to be increasing among Nigeria youths; sadly, not enough studies that investigates the influence of the internet on health seeking behaviors of Nigeria youths have been done. This study therefore investigates the influence of the internet on health seeking behaviors of youths in Ekiti-state, Nigeria, examines the extent to which the internet provides answers to health related questions among the youths, determines the perception of Nigeria youths on internet’s influence on health seeking among them, and ultimately, this study finds out whether the use of internet increases or decreases self-medication among Nigerian youths. A standardized nine-question survey on Internet use and health seeking behavior was given to 300 youths. A review of the literature is also included. It was discovered that out of 300 responses received, 203 youths (67.7%) reported ever consulting the internet to find health information. 194 (64.6%) youths consult the internet for answers to health problems before thinking of consulting a doctor or a caregiver. A large number of the youths (93.1%) follow the online physician advice more closely by practicing self-medication. A total of 191 (94%) youths submitted that the internet influences their behavior of health seeking. Conclusively, the tests of hypothesis show a significant relationship between the use of internet and health seeking behaviors of youths also between the use of internet and self-medication among youths in Ekiti- State, Nigeria.},
 year = {2019}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Influence of the Internet on Health Seeking Behaviors of Youths in Ekiti State, Nigeria
AU  - Adeosun Foluke Odunayo
AU  - Folayan Opeoluwa Florence
Y1  - 2019/10/15
PY  - 2019
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ss.20190805.20
DO  - 10.11648/j.ss.20190805.20
T2  - Social Sciences
JF  - Social Sciences
JO  - Social Sciences
SP  - 282
EP  - 288
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2326-988X
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ss.20190805.20
AB  - The use of online resources to locate health-related information is known to be increasing among Nigeria youths; sadly, not enough studies that investigates the influence of the internet on health seeking behaviors of Nigeria youths have been done. This study therefore investigates the influence of the internet on health seeking behaviors of youths in Ekiti-state, Nigeria, examines the extent to which the internet provides answers to health related questions among the youths, determines the perception of Nigeria youths on internet’s influence on health seeking among them, and ultimately, this study finds out whether the use of internet increases or decreases self-medication among Nigerian youths. A standardized nine-question survey on Internet use and health seeking behavior was given to 300 youths. A review of the literature is also included. It was discovered that out of 300 responses received, 203 youths (67.7%) reported ever consulting the internet to find health information. 194 (64.6%) youths consult the internet for answers to health problems before thinking of consulting a doctor or a caregiver. A large number of the youths (93.1%) follow the online physician advice more closely by practicing self-medication. A total of 191 (94%) youths submitted that the internet influences their behavior of health seeking. Conclusively, the tests of hypothesis show a significant relationship between the use of internet and health seeking behaviors of youths also between the use of internet and self-medication among youths in Ekiti- State, Nigeria.
VL  - 8
IS  - 5
ER  -

Copy | Download