Investigate the quality of learning acquired through the internet in future studies¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · 7 claims (7 for) · 1 study (1 review), q2 · 0 of 1 report an effect size · 7 claims rest on one study

Description¶

The review recommends that future studies investigate the quality/performance of learning acquired through the internet by informal caregivers. It states: "For future studies, it is suggested to investigate the quality of learning acquired through the Internet." This addresses the gap that current evidence on caregiver self-directed learning via mobile health is largely limited to access, willingness, and preference data rather than learning outcomes.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Future studies should measure the quality or performance of learning acquired through the internet

Constraints¶

• Current included studies were all observational and cross-sectional

Target Learners¶

• Informal caregivers

Target Learning Goals¶

• Health education
• Self-directed learning

Claims¶

• Caregivers want information about the disease, specific patient care, and how to be a caregiver [+W]
• Smartphone access among informal caregivers ranges from 61% to 99% depending on country [+W]
• Informal caregivers tend to seek more health information on the internet than non-caregivers [+W]
• Internet access and trust in information are the main barriers to caregiver self-directed learning via mobile health [+W]
• Caregivers with low confidence in their own health are more likely to seek health information online [+W]
• Knowledge and self-efficacy in COVID-19 caregiving increased after a self-learning software intervention [+W]
• Being a woman, married, higher education, stable employment, and high income are associated with seeking health information online [+W]

Related Strategies¶

• Develop mobile health applications that account for caregiver age and technology familiarity
• Incorporate internet and widely used smartphone applications into future EBP teaching to foster online interactive learning and engagement

Examples¶

-

Key Sources¶

• Pereira Dauster Souza; Pereira Priscilla Perez da Silva. (2025). Self-directed learning of informal caregivers using mobile health: a systematic review. BMC Health Services Research. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-025-13019-7