Validating the Digital Health Literacy Instrument in Relation to COVID-19 Information (COVID-DHL-K) among South Korean Undergraduates

Heeran Chun, Eun-Ja Park, Seul Ki Choi, Hyeran Yoon, Orkan Okan and Kevin Dadaczynski
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Heeran Chun: Department of Health Administration, Jungwon University, Chungbuk 28024, Korea
Eun-Ja Park: Korea Institute for Health Social Affairs, Sejong 30147, Korea
Seul Ki Choi: Graduate School of Urban Public Health, University of Seoul, Seoul 02504, Korea
Hyeran Yoon: Department of Health Administration, Jungwon University, Chungbuk 28024, Korea
Orkan Okan: Department of Sports and Health Sciences, Technical University Munich, 80809 Munich, Germany
Kevin Dadaczynski: Department of Nursing and Health Science, Fulda University of Applied Sciences, 36037 Fulda, Germany

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 6, 1-9

Abstract: Digital health literacy is crucial in accessing and applying health information in the COVID-19 pandemic period. Young college students are exposed daily to digital technologies, and they have further increased the use of digital information during the COVID-19 period. This study aimed to adapt DHLI into Korean and to assess the psychometric properties, during the COVID-19 pandemic period. A cross-sectional, nationwide, and web-based survey was conducted among 604 Korean undergraduates from 23 December 2020 to 8 January 2021. On the basis of the Digital Health Literacy Instrument (DHLI) by the Global COVID HL Network, the Korean questionnaire was developed by group translation, expert reviews, and forward–backward translation for validation. The scale reliability and validity were examined using Cronbach’s alpha and confirmatory factor analysis. Results support the theoretical and empirical four-factor structure (search, express, evaluate, use) in the coronavirus-related DHL among Korean University students. Internal reliability of the overall scale was high (Cronbach’s α = 0.908). The four-factor model was supported by confirmatory factor analysis (GFI = 0.972, CFI = 0.984, TLI = 0.978, RMSEA = 0.045). This study revealed that the COVID-DHL-K is a valid and reliable measure with appropriate psychometric characteristics.

Keywords: digital health literacy; measure; validation; university students (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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