Adopt or not? The determinants of health information adoption in online question-and-answer communities

Purpose The landscape of health information acquisition has shifted from offline to online, and online question-and-answer (Q&A) communities have emerged as prominent sources of health information; however, it is unclear how users identify satisfactory health information. This paper identifies factors that influence users’ adoption of health information in the context of online Q&A communities. Design/methodology/approach Based on the elaboration likelihood model (ELM) and opinion leader theory, we construct a research model to examine how information quality (complexity, image structure and emotional change) and source credibility (authentication status, follower number) affect health information adoption behavior. We verify the hypotheses by Poisson regression and zero-inflation Poisson regression using the data collected from an online Q&A community. Findings The empirical results indicate that both information quality and source credibility positively affect users’ adoption of health information. Originality/value This research can assist designers and managers of online Q&A communities to better comprehend users’ health information needs and their preferences for adoption. This enhanced understanding can facilitate the provision of superior online health information.