Predisposing, Enabling, and Need Factors Associated with Health Information Technology Use for Personal Health Management among Adults in the United States: Application of Andersen’s Behavioral Model

Health information technology (HIT) can facilitate informed decisions regarding health conditions. This study aimed to examine the predisposing factors, enabling factors, and need factors associated with the use of HIT for personal health management. Individuals with chronic conditions might further need to use HIT tools to improve their health outcomes.
This study used secondary data with a sample size of 3,865 from the 4th cycle of 2020 Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS) 5. Using multivariable logistic regression, we used four regression models to examine the association between the dependent and independent variables, such as multiple chronic conditions and sociodemographic characteristics. The dependent variables representing the use of HIT were “looked for health or medical information for yourself”, “used e-mail or the Internet to communicate with a doctor or doctor’s office”, “looked up medical test results”, and “made appointments with a healthcare provider.”
Adults with 3 or more chronic conditions had higher odds of looking for health or medical information for themselves (Adjusted Odds Ratio AOR= 1.9; Confidence Interval CI:1.09-3.32), using e-mail or the Internet to communicate with a doctor or doctor’s office (AOR= 1.84; CI, 1.20-2.81), and looking up medical test results (AOR= 2.04; CI, 1.19-3.50) when compared to those with no chronic conditions. Compared to individuals who had less than a high school degree, those with a college degree were more likely to look for health or medical information for themselves (Adjusted Odds Ratio AOR= 7.21; Confidence Interval CI, 2.34-22.23), use e-mail or the Internet to communicate with a doctor or doctor’s office (AOR=3.01; CI, 1.47-6.17), look up medical test results (AOR=4.34; CI, 2.46-7.65), and make appointments with a healthcare provider (AOR= 2.84; CI, 1.40-5.76). Enabling factors strongly associated with HIT use were having a regular provider and having access to the Internet.
This study provides evidence about the factors that influence the use of health information technology for personal health management.