Toward Wellness: Women Seeking Health Information Dorothy Warner Rider University Libraries, 2083 Lawrenceville Road, Lawrenceville, NJ 08648-3099. E-mail: warner@rider.edu J. Drew Procaccino Rider University, 2083 Lawrenceville Road, Lawrenceville, NJ 08648-3099. E-mail: jdproc@aol.com As health information seekers pursue their “right to know” when investigating medical options, the question of reliable health information resources becomes para- mount. Previous research has not addressed widely the connection between women as the health information seeker and quality health information, nor has women’s awareness of specific health and medical resources been adequately evaluated. A study with a convenience sample of 119 women assessed the process of seeking health information (women’s health information needs, the search strategies they employed for filling the infor- mation need, and the use of the health information found), and their awareness of specific health and med- ical information resources. Our survey instrument was based on Kuhlthau’s Information Search Process (ISP) model. Results appeared to address the uncertainty stage of the ISP model, as there were conflicting re- sponses regarding the facility of locating information, the usefulness of the information found, and whether or not the subjects’ health questions were answered. The study also identified a low awareness by our respon- dents of specific health and medical information re- sources. There is an opportunity for health information providers to play a role in mediating at this uncertainty stage to connect health information seekers with reli- able information. Introduction As the medical community has encouraged more patient involvement in and responsibility for medical decision- making, and healthcare consumers pursue their “right to know” their medical options, the question of reliable health information resources becomes paramount. “Patient em- powerment has fostered the development of shared deci- sion-making for people facing healthcare or treatment choices. Autonomous and self-determined adults want to make their own choices, and the widespread availability of information on the Internet has made learning the options easier” (Klein-Fedyshin, 2002, p. 44; see also, Calabretta, 2002; Stavri, 2001; Thomas, 1993). However, health infor- mation may be more accessible to some, but are health information seekers, women in particular, aware of quality health information resources? This study focuses on women because “there is a general impression that women use physician services more often than men; in particular, women are thought to be more attuned to care of their health and more likely to seek preventive services” (Muller, 1990, p. 40). National data supports the higher rate of visits by women to their physi- cians (Muller, 1990, p. 40). Stern (1986) notes “women have guarded the health of their families since the dawn of human time . . . using special knowledge received from older women” (p. xi). Others who note women as “gate- keepers” for health include Navarro and Wilkins (2001), Calabretta (2002), Apple (1990), Whelehan et al. (1988), and Leavitt (1984). What constitutes the health information seeking behavior of women? We identify and investigate the following aspects of the health information seeking process: determining the health information need, determin- ing the search strategies employed for filling the health information need, and the use of the health information once located. We question whether the information seeking pro- cess of female health seekers is being considered in attempts to connect them with quality health information. Without reliable information, the health information-seeker cannot proceed effectively in medical decision-making. These questions form the basis of identifying a type of everyday life information seeking (Savolainen, 1995) in- tended to result in a “mastery of life” that comes about through the development of a “sense of coherence.” Savol- ainen (1995, p. 264) summarizes the work of Antonovsky, who defined the concept of sense of coherence as including the qualities of “comprehensibility, manageability, and meaningfulness of stimuli.” This can be understood within the health information seeking process as an “attempt to gain control over health-related events” (Johnson & Meis- chke, 1991, p. 748) through a process designed to meet the individual’s ability to “cope cognitively with change” (p. 748). That process may include several channels, formal, Accepted December 3, 2003 © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. ● Published online 24 February 2004 in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI: 10.1002/asi.20016 JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR INFORMATION SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, 55(8):709 –730, 2004