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PubMed1999

Information exchange in an epilepsy forum on the World Wide Web.

The Partners Healthcare Epilepsy Service hosts an epilepsy 'Webforum'. In this paper, we describe our observations regarding who uses it, what kind of information is exchanged, how much misinformation is present and how we can better serve our patients. We examined a sample of 155 posts to the forum and 342 responses to those posts. The individual making the post and the type of questions were categorized. We also determined whether any information was objectively inaccurate. The principal users were care-givers (49%) and patients (34%). Eighty percent of the primary posts were questions. Answers were given largely by patients (38%) and care-givers (34%). The most commonly asked questions were about treatment options (31%) and the natural history of the illness (28%). In 20% of the questions, the user incidentally remarked that a health-care provider had not met their information needs. Six percent of the information was objectively inaccurate. The Web can serve as an effective means for the exchange of information between individuals with a common medical condition. We found that a small amount of misinformation is exchanged and that health-care providers are sometimes perceived as unable or unwilling to supply important health-related information.

Computer-Assisted Instruction↗
PubMed1994

Suggestibility and repressed memories of abuse: a survey of psychotherapists' beliefs.

The mental health field is deeply divided in its views regarding the possibility of creating false memories of sexual abuse through suggestive procedures. Psychotherapists in clinical practice were surveyed regarding their views on memory and hypnosis in order to assess how their perspectives might influence their clinical methods. Survey data regarding hypnosis and suggestibility indicate that while psychotherapists largely view hypnosis favorably, they often do so on the basis of misinformation. A significant number of psychotherapists erroneously believe, for example, that memories obtained through hypnosis are more likely to be accurate than those simply recalled, and that hypnosis can be used to recover accurate memories even from as far back as birth. Such misinformed views can lead to misapplications of hypnosis when attempting to actively recover memories of presumably repressed episodes of abuse, possibly resulting in the recovery of suggested rather than actual memories.

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Pseudomemories without hypnosis.

Hypnosis is often colloquially associated with "the power of suggestion"; however, some cognitive memory researchers believe that suggestions have power even without hypnosis. A well-known phenomenon in cognitive psychology is the "misinformation effect," in which subjects who are misled about previously witnessed events often integrate that inaccurate postevent information into their accounts of the event. In the present article, we review the misinformation literature in four major rounds according to the nature of the memory distortion. The first three rounds are studies of memory suggestibility for observed events; by contrast, the fourth (and newest) one deals with personal or autobiographical memory. Considered collectively, these four rounds of research provide compelling evidence that it is not hard at all to make people truly believe they have seen or experienced something they have not-without any hypnosis at all. Finally, we discuss the tragic implications for the unquestioned acceptance of all recovered memories.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1996

Effects of temporally varied biased and unbiased story summaries on the suggestibility of preschoolers.

Preschool children's resistance to the influence of postevent misinformation was investigated. Ninety-one preschoolers (3 years 6 months to 5 years 6 months old) were read a story about a boy's birthday party. One week later, they received 1 of 3 summary conditions containing general information (unbiased, biased, or no summary). Two weeks after the original story, they were presented with either a biased summary or no summary. The children's suggestibility was assessed by a recognition test that provided a choice between the original and postevent misinformation. Those who received an unbiased summary showed higher recognition rates than those who received a biased summary, regardless of whether the biased information had been given at the 1- or 2-week interval. Although an unbiased summary followed by biased information did not produce greater recognition rates that were found in the control group, participants who received unbiased summaries did perform above chance, suggesting that even a vague summary may help to reactivate specific memory traces, particularly when information is bimodally presented.

Attention↗
PubMed2004

Are smokers adequately informed about the health risks of smoking and medicinal nicotine?

The present study assessed smokers' beliefs about the health risks of smoking and the benefits of smoking filtered and low-tar cigarettes, and their awareness of and interest in trying so-called reduced-risk tobacco products. Results were based on a nationally representative random-digit-dialed telephone survey of 1,046 adult (aged 18 years or older) current cigarette smokers. Data were gathered on demographic characteristics, tobacco use behaviors, awareness and use of nicotine medications, beliefs about the health risks of smoking, content of smoke and design features of cigarettes, and the safety and efficacy of nicotine medications. In addition, respondents were asked about their interest in and perceived ability to stop smoking and about their desire for more information about the health risks of smoking. Smokers were least knowledgeable about low-tar and filter cigarettes (65% of responses were incorrect or "don't know") and most knowledgeable about the health risks of smoking (39% of responses were incorrect or "don't know"). The smokers' characteristics most commonly associated with misinformation when all six indices were combined into a summary index were as follows: those aged 45 years or older, smokers of ultralight cigarettes, smokers who believe they will stop smoking before they experience a serious health problem caused by smoking, smokers who have never used a stop-smoking medication, and smokers with a lower education level. Those who believed they would stop smoking in the next year were more knowledgeable about smoking. Some 77% of respondents reported a desire for additional information from tobacco companies on the health dangers of smoking. The present findings demonstrate that smokers are misinformed about many aspects of the cigarettes they smoke and stop-smoking medications and that they want more information about ways to reduce their health risks.

Adult↗
PubMed2026

Navigating acceptance: challenges and barriers to Nipah virus vaccine uptake in Malaysia's muslim-majority context.

INTRODUCTION: The development of Nipah virus (NiV) vaccine offers a vital opportunity for pandemic preparedness in Southeast Asia, especially in Malaysia, where the first outbreak occurred. However, vaccine acceptance must be understood within diverse cultural, religious, and social contexts. AREAS COVERED: This review explores key challenges and barriers to NiV vaccine uptake among Malaysia's Muslim-majority population, drawing insights from past rollouts such as COVID-19 and HPV vaccines. Key issues include religious concerns, misinformation, historical hesitancy, lack of trust in health authorities, and gaps in knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions, which collectively hinder vaccine acceptance and uptake. The paper also highlights enablers namely religious endorsements, transparent communication, and culturally sensitive engagement with trusted healthcare and community leaders. Evidence-based strategies, like motivational interviewing, narrative communication, and tailored outreach, are discussed. Finally, the 7C model is introduced as a structured framework to address behavioral and psychological barriers to vaccination. EXPERT OPINION: Research gaps remain in understanding local psychological drivers, religious governance dynamics, and misinformation patterns. Future efforts should prioritize nationwide KAP studies, validation of behavioral frameworks such as the 7C model, and interventional research on culturally tailored communication. Integrating early halal certification and coordinated religious engagement will be essential for effective and equitable uptake.

Humans↗
PubMed1994

Condom use negotiation among sex workers in Singapore: findings from qualitative research.

Following an earlier study of 806 sex workers in Singapore in which they were found to succeed only half the time in getting clients to use condoms, a qualitative investigation was conducted on 40 sex workers to explore their perceived barriers and approaches in negotiating condom use with clients. Five different patterns of condom use were identified: successful, unsuccessful, misinformed, passive and uninterested. The successful negotiators used several practical approaches to secure clients' compliance. Unsuccessful negotiators experienced problems such as inability to resist clients' pressure or respond to their queries. The misinformed group believed that regular clients were safe. The passive group did not negotiate condom use due to their perceptions of lack of support from peers and brothel keepers, and the uninterested group was apathetic with fatalistic perceptions of AIDS. The in-depth interviews with successful negotiators provided relevant, specific and practical information which could be disseminated to their peers to develop their negotiation skills. This qualitative study also provided useful insights on condom use negotiation and highlighted the need for comprehensive interventions which should not only aim at developing sex workers' negotiation skills but also at gathering support from brothel keepers to facilitate behaviour change, and public education directed at clients to increase condom use.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

Drug formularies: myths-in-formation.

Drug formularies are pivotal tools for delineating and directing prescribing to the "drugs of choice." Full realization of their potential has been hampered by insufficient comparative data on drug efficacy/safety and local resources for formulary development. However, misconceptions concerning fundamental formulary concepts pose an even more formidable obstacle. This article identifies statements illustrating formulary misconception a) made by physicians attending Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee meetings during a three-year period and b) appearing in published sources. The paper highlights basic objectives and operational requirements of an effective formulary, and contrasts this definition with 20 myths and misinformation culled from these two sources. Not only does such misinformation impair formulary development, many critics are so preoccupied with alleged shortcomings that progress in minimizing the real limitations of formularies has been impeded.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMed2002

Reconstructive breast surgery: referring physician knowledge and learning needs.

Despite the positive impact that reconstructive breast surgery can have on a woman's quality of life, the percentage of eligible candidates that have this procedure remains surprisingly low. The authors hypothesized that this may be attributable to inadequate knowledge, inadequate information, and/or misinformation available to physicians caring for these patients. A needs assessment of primary care physicians, general surgeons, oncologists, and plastic surgeons was conducted to determine referring physicians' current level of knowledge of reconstructive breast surgery and to discover potential learning needs. This comprised a survey, focus groups, and individual interviews. Referring physicians rated their own knowledge of reconstructive breast surgery as low. Plastic surgeons rated their referring physicians' knowledge as even lower. Specific learning needs were identified, as large discrepancies between referring physicians' self-reported knowledge of individual breast reconstruction topics and their own opinion of their relevance were revealed. In addition, despite evidence to the contrary, more than one-third of referring physicians indicated a belief that a breast reconstruction delayed the detection of local cancer recurrence and adversely interfered with adjuvant oncologic therapy. This lack of knowledge and misinformation may be negatively affecting patient referrals to plastic surgeons, as more than one-third of referring physicians and 90 percent of plastic surgeons believed that eligible candidates were not being offered referrals because of inadequate referring physician knowledge of this topic. Furthermore, patients older than 49 years were not being referred despite the fact that plastic surgeons would consider these patients as potential surgical candidates. Referring physician gender affected both referral patterns and perceived importance of reconstructive breast surgery. Finally, personal beliefs and past experiences played a role both in physicians' decisions to refer patients and in patients' decisions to have breast reconstructions. These deficiencies in information, knowledge, and learning needs should be addressed by educational interventions during residency training and through continuing education endeavors.

Attitude of Health Personnel↗
PubMed2006

Barriers to fertility regulation: a review of the literature.

The evidence in the demographic and family planning literature of the range and diversity of the barriers to fertility regulation in many developing countries is reviewed in this article from a consumer perspective. Barriers are defined as the constraining factors standing between women and the realistic availability of the technologies and correct information they need in order to decide whether and when to have a child. The barriers include limited method choice, financial costs, the status of women, medical and legal restrictions, provider bias, and misinformation. The presence or absence of barriers to fertility regulation is likely an important determinant of the pace of fertility decline or its delay in many countries. At the same time, barriers inhibit women's ability to avoid unintended pregnancy. Problems of quantifying barriers limit understanding of their importance. New ways to quantify them and to identify misinformation, which is often concealed in survey data, are needed for future research.

Abortion, Induced↗
PubMed2002

Failed promises of the cigarette industry and its effect on consumer misperceptions about the health risks of smoking.

BACKGROUND: In January 1954, US tobacco manufacturers jointly sponsored an advocacy advertisement entitled "A Frank Statement to Cigarette Smokers" which appeared in 448 newspapers in 258 cities reaching an estimated 43 245 000 Americans. The advertisement questioned research findings implicating smoking as a cause of cancer, promised consumers that their cigarettes were safe, and pledged to support impartial research to investigate allegations that smoking was harmful to human health. OBJECTIVE: To examine (1) the extent to which cigarette companies fulfilled the promises made to consumers in the 1954 "Frank Statement", and (2) the effect of these promises on consumer knowledge, beliefs, and smoking practices. METHODS: This study reviews statements made since 1954 by the tobacco companies individually and collectively through the Tobacco Institute and Tobacco Industry Research Committee/Council for Tobacco Research on the subject of smoking as a cause disease, and the industry's pledge to support and disclose the results of impartial research on smoking and health. Many of the industry documents evaluated in this study were obtained from a collection consisting of 116 documents entitled the "Statement of Defendants' Misrepresentations" prepared by attorneys representing the state of Connecticut in the Medicaid litigation against the tobacco industry in 1998. In addition, we searched for corroborating material from tobacco industry documents collected from the tobacco industry's document websites. In order to contrast industry statements on smoking and health with what smokers' actually believed about smoking we reviewed reports of public polling data on smokers' knowledge and beliefs about smoking and disease gathered from tobacco industry sources and from surveys conducted by public health researchers. RESULTS: Analysis of public statements issued by the tobacco industry sources over the past five decades shows that the companies maintained the stance that smoking had not been proven to be injurious to health through 1999. The public statements of the tobacco industry are in sharp contrast to the private views expressed by many of their own scientists. The tobacco documents reveal that many scientists within the tobacco industry acknowledged as early as the 1950s that cigarette smoking was unsafe. The sincerity of the industry's promise to support research to find out if smoking was harmful to health and to disclose information about the health effects of smoking can also be questioned based upon the industry's own documents which reveal: (1) scepticism about the scientific value of the smoking and health research program established by the industry; and (2) evidence that research findings implicating smoking as a health problem were often not published or disclosed outside the industry. Industry documents also show that the companies knew that their own customers were misinformed about smoking and health issues. CONCLUSION: It is clear that the cigarette companies failed to fulfill the promises made to consumers in the 1954 "Frank Statement" advertisement. The failure of cigarette manufacturers to honour these promises has resulted in a public that even today remains misinformed about the health risks of smoking.

Consumer Product Safety↗
PubMed2002

Women, menopause, and (Ms.)information: communication about the climacteric.

This research utilizes a communication perspective to examine the dissemination of information about menopause in terms of women's attitudes, beliefs, and knowledge. Specifically, this study uses a grounded theory approach (Glaser & Strauss, 1967) to explore the communicative processes of misinformation concerning women's lived experiences in relation to the climacteric. Five emergent themes extracted from premenopausal, perimenopausal, and postmenopausal women's discourse are identified and described through qualitative data analysis. Findings suggest that due to a lack of consistent communication, women are generally either unknowledgeable or misinformed about menopause and its related issues. Inaccurate information concerning a health-related experience that all women undergo has negative implications for women, their practitioners, and society. Moreover, a clearer understanding of women's experiences concerning menopause may enhance communication in physician-patient interactions (PPIs).

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Knowledge of human papillomavirus and effects on sexual behaviour of gay/bisexual men: a brief report.

The objective of this study was to examine the knowledge and misinformation about human papillomavirus (HPV) and differences in sexual risk practices. Self-report surveys assessing the history of HPV/genital warts and sexual practices were completed by 1065 gay/bisexual men in New York City. Of the men reporting a history of HPV, genital warts, or both, the majority reported having warts but not HPV, demonstrating inaccurate knowledge. A significantly greater percentage of men who reported both HPV and warts (HPV+) reported having unsafe sex compared with men reporting neither (HPV-) and men reporting warts but not HPV (HPV+ uninformed). HPV+ and HPV+ uninformed men reported significantly more men non-primary sex partners in the past three months than HPV- men. Findings indicate that many gay/bisexual men, a population at risk for HPV, are misinformed about its various permutations. Men who are HPV+ report increased sexual risk practices and more sexual partners. Comprehensive gay men's health programmes must include HPV education.

Bisexuality↗
PubMed2002

Two wrongs don't make a right: harm aggravated by inaccurate information on the Internet.

There has been much concern expressed in the literature about the use of medical information on the Internet by patients and families. Although much work has been done to quantify the misinformation available on the Internet, there have not been reports of actual harm to children resulting from this misinformation. We present the case of a 1-year-old boy whose clinical course of diarrhea was complicated not only by inaccurate advice given by the emergency room physician, but also by the same advice received from the Internet.

Diarrhea↗
PubMed2001

Knowledge of newborn health care among pregnant women: basis for promotional and educational programs on breastfeeding.

CONTEXT: Promotional and educational programs relating to breast feeding are important for reversing the decline in this practice. Most programs are centered exclusively on breast feeding, although general knowledge about newborn health care may be important, especially among pregnant women. OBJECTIVE: To study pregnant women's knowledge about general health care of newborns, including breast feeding aspects. TYPE OF STUDY: Cross-sectional. SETTING: Prof. Samuel Barnsley Pessoa Health School Center, Faculty of Medicine, University of São Paulo, Brazil. PARTICIPANTS: All pregnant women who were registered in the prenatal care program during six consecutive months. MAIN MEASUREMENTS: Aspects of the current gestation, previous gestations and childbirth, knowledge of the general aspects of newborn health care and of breast feeding practices. RESULTS: The results show that only a little over half of the pregnant women had received any information on newborn health care. Misinformation was clearly present regarding proper care of the umbilical stump and the nature of jaundice, and worst regarding how to treat oral thrush and jaundice, and about vaccination. In relation to breast feeding, even though almost all the pregnant women declared their intention to breast feeding, less than half had a concrete response regarding how long to do it for. The low rates obtained in the topics dealing with the duration, nursing intervals and the attitude to be taken towards hypogalactia show unfamiliarity with the breast feeding technique. The "weak milk" belief, the misinformation about contraceptive methods during breast feeding and the cost of artificial formulas also have a negative impact on this practice. CONCLUSIONS: Pregnant women's knowledge of newborn health care is low, as much in the aspects of general care as in relation to the practice of breast feeding. These findings must be taken into consideration in educative programs promoting breast feeding.

Breast Feeding↗
PubMed2005

A case study of a retracted systematic review on interactive health communication applications: impact on media, scientists, and patients.

BACKGROUND: In October 2004, a flawed systematic review entitled "Interactive Health Communication Applications for People with Chronic Disease" was published in the Cochrane Library, accompanied by several press releases in which authors warned the public of the negative health consequences of interactive health communication applications, including the Internet. Within days of the review's publication, scientists identified major coding errors and other methodological problems that invalidated the principal conclusions of the study and led to a retraction. While the original study results and their negative conclusions were widely publicized in the media, the retraction seemed to go unnoticed. OBJECTIVE: This paper aims to document an unprecedented case of misinformation from a Cochrane review and its impact on media, scientists, and patients. As well, it aims to identify the generic factors leading to the incident and suggest remedies. METHODS: This was a qualitative study of the events leading to the retraction of the publication and of the reactions from media, scientists, and patients. This includes a review and content analysis of academic and mass media articles responding to the publication and retraction. Mass media articles were retrieved in May 2005 from LexisNexis Academic and Google and were classified and tallied. The extended case method is employed, and the analysis is also applied to comparable publishing events. RESULTS: A search on LexisNexis Academic database with the query "Elizabeth Murray AND health" for the period of June 2004 to May 2005 revealed a total of 15 press reports, of which only 1 addressed the retraction. Google was searched for references to the review, and the first 200 retrieved hits were analyzed. Of these, 170 pages were not related to the review. Of the remaining 30 pages, 23 (77%) were reports about the original publication that did not mention the retraction, 1 (3%) was a bibliography not mentioning the retraction, and 6 (20%) addressed the retraction, of which only 1 was a non-Cochrane-related source. CONCLUSIONS: Analyzed retrievals showed that the mass media gave more coverage to the Cochrane review than to the retraction or to a related systematic review with a similar scope but a different conclusion. Questionable results were prematurely disseminated, oversimplified, and sensationalized, while the retraction was hardly noticed by the public. Open commentary by scientists and patients helped to rapidly identify the errors but did not prevent or correct the dissemination of misinformation.

Humans↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Do patterns of knowledge and attitudes exist among unvaccinated seniors?

OBJECTIVE: To examine patterns of knowledge and attitudes among adults aged > 65 years unvaccinated for influenza. METHODS: Surveyed Medicare beneficiaries in 5 areas; clustered unvaccinated seniors by their immunization related knowledge and attitudes. RESULTS: Identified 4 clusters: Potentials (45%) would receive influenza vaccine to prevent disease; Fearful Uninformeds (9%) were unsure if influenza vaccine causes illness; Doubters (27%) were unsure if vaccine is efficacious; Misinformeds (19%) believed influenza vaccine causes illness. More Potentials (75%) and Misinformeds (70%) ever received influenza vaccine than did Fearful Uninformeds (18%) and Doubters (29%). CONCLUSION: Findings suggest that cluster analyses may be useful in identifying groups for targeted health messages.

Aged↗
PubMed1998

Coverage and quality of oral cancer information in the popular press: 1987-98.

OBJECTIVES: National data show a lack of knowledge and misinformation about oral cancer and its early detection among the general public. A major source of health information is the popular press. For that reason this study reviewed coverage and quality of news items on the topic of oral cancer in the popular press. In addition, the number and types of tobacco advertisements in women and men's magazines were recorded for a one-year period. METHODS: Articles from magazines and newspapers were retrieved from the Magazine Index (1987 to April 1998), Newspaper Abstract (1989 to April 1998) and the Health & Wellness (1987 to April 1998) databases. The articles were analyzed both for adequacy of content and information. RESULTS: A total of 50 articles and news items including oral cancer were identified and analyzed, 18 from newspapers and 32 from magazines. Ninety-four percent of the articles mentioned at least one risk factor for oral cancer. More than half of the articles (56%) identified spit tobacco (chewing tobacco or snuff) as the major risk factor for oral cancer, while far fewer mentioned either cigarettes (32%) or cigars (12%). Over 50 percent of the articles did not mention warning signs for oral cancers. Fourteen percent suggested clinical oral cancer examinations by a health professional; only 8 percent advised the use of self-examination. A total of 417 tobacco advertisements (482 pages) were found among 22 magazines for the one-year period. They included 410 cigarette ads, seven cigar ads, and no spit tobacco ads. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates the lack of coverage about oral cancer in the popular press in the past decade and provides a partial explanation of the public's lack of knowledge and misinformation about oral cancers.

Advertising↗