Anxiety information: What do people want and what is out there?

Simple item page
dc.contributor.authorBernstein, Matthew T
dc.contributor.examiningcommitteeJakobson, Lorna (Psychology)en_US
dc.contributor.examiningcommitteeStoesz, Brenda (Psychology)en_US
dc.contributor.examiningcommitteeAlcolado, Gillian (Clinical Health Psychology)en_US
dc.contributor.guestmembersHadjistavropoulos, Heather (University of Regina)en_US
dc.contributor.supervisorReynolds, Kristin (Psychology) Furer, Patricia (Psychology)en_US
dc.date.accessioned2020-06-24T16:50:26Z
dc.date.available2020-06-24T16:50:26Z
dc.date.copyright2020-04-20
dc.date.issued2020en_US
dc.date.submitted2020-04-20T20:49:44Zen_US
dc.degree.disciplinePsychologyen_US
dc.degree.levelDoctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)en_US
dc.description.abstractAnxiety disorders are the most common class of mental disorders and negatively impact the lives of those experiencing them. Persons with anxiety may face important decisions regarding treatment options, with a range of possible choices. The problem is that they often lack knowledge about the choices available. The present research involved two studies with the aim of evaluating information needs and currently available anxiety information. Using a quantitative web-based survey, Study 1 evaluated the information that persons with and without anxiety consider to be most important when making treatment decisions. Samples were recruited from psychology (N = 113) and psychiatry (N = 64) clinics and a self-help association website (N = 288). Multiple linear regression analyses were employed to explore the relationship between personal characteristics and the outcome variables of information importance and information received when making treatment decisions. Overall, respondents expressed interest in information on a wide range of topics, but they seldom reported receiving “the right amount” of information. Females rated fewer treatment information topics as very important, compared to males. Study 2 evaluated the quality of existing websites containing anxiety information to consider whether they adequately provide the information judged to be important by the public. Twenty websites were evaluated on the following characteristics: quality, readability, usability, content, and visual design. Results indicated that existing anxiety websites are of variable quality and often do not provide descriptions of multiple treatment options. Taken together, findings of these two studies suggest that there is a discrepancy between the public’s information needs and existing anxiety information. These studies provide valuable information that may contribute to improving resources to meet the information needs of persons with anxiety disorders, potentially enhancing the shared-decision making process.en_US
dc.description.noteOctober 2020en_US
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1993/34724
dc.language.isoengen_US
dc.rightsopen accessen_US
dc.subjectAnxietyen_US
dc.subjectAnxiety treatmenten_US
dc.subjectAnxiety websitesen_US
dc.subjectInformation needsen_US
dc.titleAnxiety information: What do people want and what is out there?en_US
dc.typedoctoral thesisen_US
Files
Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Thumbnail Image
Name:
Bernstein_Matthew.pdf
Size:
1.35 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Matthew Bernstein's Dissertation
Download
License bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Thumbnail Image
Name:
license.txt
Size:
2.2 KB
Format:
Item-specific license agreed to upon submission
Description:
Download
Collections
FGS - Electronic Theses and Practica