Counteracting cyberchondria in Chinese chronic disease patients: The divergent roles of health-related social media use and online patient-centered communication.

Abstract

Cyberchondria poses escalating challenges for chronic disease patients who increasingly rely on digital platforms for health information, yet the differential roles of online health engagement modalities remain understudied. Drawing on the stress-strain-outcome (SSO) model, this study examines how health-related social media use (SMU) and online patient-centered communication (OPCC) are associated with cyberchondria among Chinese chronic disease patients, investigating negative affect toward online health information as a mediator and eHealth literacy as a moderator. A national survey was conducted from October 2024 to January 2025. This research encompassed a cohort of 827 chronic disease participants. R and RStudio were used for data analysis. More frequent health-related SMU was positively associated with cyberchondria, both directly and indirectly, through increased negative affect. In contrast, OPCC was exclusively linked to alleviated cyberchondria via reduced negative affect. Furthermore, patients with higher eHealth literacy experience less negative affect from health-related SMU. These findings extend the SSO model by demonstrating divergent technology-specific psychological pathways and highlighting the potential protective role of OPCC. Our results suggest that enhancing chronic disease patients' digital health competencies and developing OPCC could effectively counteract cyberchondria in the digital era.