JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

The concept of health literacy (HL) is constantly evolving and social determinants of health (SDoH) have been receiving considerable attention in public health scholarship. Since a one-size-fits-all approach for HL fails to account for multiple contextual factors and as a result poses challenges in improving literacy levels, there a need to develop a deeper understanding of the current state of HL and DHL research.

Objective:

This study examined scholars’ conceptualization and scope of work focused on HL and digital health literacy (DHL).

Methods:

Using a search string, HL and/or DHL investigators (n=2042) were identified from the grantee websites of NIH RePORTER and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research who were emailed a survey via Qualtrics. Survey questions examined focus of work; whether investigators studied HL/DHL in combination with other SDoH; frameworks, definitions, and approaches used; and research settings.

Results:

Most investigators were from public health (49.7%); 43% reported their research focused on HL alone, 23.8% mentioned DHL, and 33.2% mentioned both. The majority (86.9%) studied HL/DHL in combination with other SDoH; 78.5% conducted HL/DHL work in a community setting; and 64.1% reported not using any specific definition to guide their work. Digital tools (69.9%), plain language materials (61.8%), and visual guides (43.1%) were the top three approaches used. Most worked with adults (95.2%), all races and ethnicities (42.7%), and US populations (65.8%).

Conclusions:

HL and DHL research largely considered SDoH. Multiple HL tools and approaches were employed which support examination and improvement of literacy and communication surrounding healthcare issues.