Media Usage, Health Literacy, Health Anxiety, and Health Behaviors of University Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Living with the pandemic influenced people’s lifestyles and health behaviors as well as their use of media.The aim of this study is to investigate the level of change in health behaviors of university students duringthe COVID-19 pandemic. The changes in health behaviors refer to changes of mainly ea...

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Main Authors: Dilek Demirtepe-saygılı, Elif Eşiyok, Eda Turancı
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Marmara University 2021-12-01
Series:Türkiye İletişim Araştırmaları Dergisi
Subjects:
Online Access:https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/download/article-file/1512286
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author Dilek Demirtepe-saygılı
Elif Eşiyok
Eda Turancı
author_facet Dilek Demirtepe-saygılı
Elif Eşiyok
Eda Turancı
author_sort Dilek Demirtepe-saygılı
collection DOAJ
description Living with the pandemic influenced people’s lifestyles and health behaviors as well as their use of media.The aim of this study is to investigate the level of change in health behaviors of university students duringthe COVID-19 pandemic. The changes in health behaviors refer to changes of mainly eating and exercisebehaviors to stay healthy. In this study, media use, health literacy and health perception are the determinantsof change in health behaviors; health anxiety and healthy living skills are considered as mediating variables.Questionnaires were filled in by 392 university students in Ankara, Turkey within the second month ofthe pandemic. According to the findings, as the levels of positive perception of health, health literacy level,health anxiety level, and healthy life skills increase, the level of change in health behavior increases. Thepath analysis revealed that more positive perceptions of health and higher levels of health literacy are relatedto higher levels of change in health behaviors through the mediation of healthy life skills. In addition, theuse of Twitter increases health anxiety during the pandemic and results in a higher level of change in healthbehaviors. The findings help to better understand the motivations to change health behaviors for selfprotectionagainst the COVID-19 among university students.
format Article
id doaj-art-f6e5e7a7ad6343a9aceca8e97b6c2949
institution Kabale University
issn 2630-6220
language English
publishDate 2021-12-01
publisher Marmara University
record_format Article
series Türkiye İletişim Araştırmaları Dergisi
spelling doaj-art-f6e5e7a7ad6343a9aceca8e97b6c29492025-01-26T18:31:35ZengMarmara UniversityTürkiye İletişim Araştırmaları Dergisi2630-62202021-12-0138193410.17829/turcom.8621023Media Usage, Health Literacy, Health Anxiety, and Health Behaviors of University Students During the COVID-19 PandemicDilek Demirtepe-saygılı0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4644-9570Elif Eşiyok1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9486-7067Eda Turancı2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2539-8452ATILIM ÜNİVERSİTESİATILIM ÜNİVERSİTESİAnkara Hacı Bayram Veli ÜniversitesiLiving with the pandemic influenced people’s lifestyles and health behaviors as well as their use of media.The aim of this study is to investigate the level of change in health behaviors of university students duringthe COVID-19 pandemic. The changes in health behaviors refer to changes of mainly eating and exercisebehaviors to stay healthy. In this study, media use, health literacy and health perception are the determinantsof change in health behaviors; health anxiety and healthy living skills are considered as mediating variables.Questionnaires were filled in by 392 university students in Ankara, Turkey within the second month ofthe pandemic. According to the findings, as the levels of positive perception of health, health literacy level,health anxiety level, and healthy life skills increase, the level of change in health behavior increases. Thepath analysis revealed that more positive perceptions of health and higher levels of health literacy are relatedto higher levels of change in health behaviors through the mediation of healthy life skills. In addition, theuse of Twitter increases health anxiety during the pandemic and results in a higher level of change in healthbehaviors. The findings help to better understand the motivations to change health behaviors for selfprotectionagainst the COVID-19 among university students.https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/download/article-file/1512286covid-19sağlık kaygısısağlık algısısağlık okuryazarlığısağlıklı yaşam becerileriüniversite öğrencilericovid-19health anxietyperception of healthhealth literacyhealthy life skillsuniversity students
spellingShingle Dilek Demirtepe-saygılı
Elif Eşiyok
Eda Turancı
Media Usage, Health Literacy, Health Anxiety, and Health Behaviors of University Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Türkiye İletişim Araştırmaları Dergisi
covid-19
sağlık kaygısı
sağlık algısı
sağlık okuryazarlığı
sağlıklı yaşam becerileri
üniversite öğrencileri
covid-19
health anxiety
perception of health
health literacy
healthy life skills
university students
title Media Usage, Health Literacy, Health Anxiety, and Health Behaviors of University Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic
title_full Media Usage, Health Literacy, Health Anxiety, and Health Behaviors of University Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic
title_fullStr Media Usage, Health Literacy, Health Anxiety, and Health Behaviors of University Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic
title_full_unstemmed Media Usage, Health Literacy, Health Anxiety, and Health Behaviors of University Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic
title_short Media Usage, Health Literacy, Health Anxiety, and Health Behaviors of University Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic
title_sort media usage health literacy health anxiety and health behaviors of university students during the covid 19 pandemic
topic covid-19
sağlık kaygısı
sağlık algısı
sağlık okuryazarlığı
sağlıklı yaşam becerileri
üniversite öğrencileri
covid-19
health anxiety
perception of health
health literacy
healthy life skills
university students
url https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/download/article-file/1512286
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