Politicians are exposed to a constant flow of information about societal problems. However, they have limited resources and need to prioritize. So, which information should they pay attention to? Previous research identifies four types of information that may matter: public concern about a problem, problem attention by rival parties, news stories about problems, and statistical problem indicators. We are the first to contrast the four types of information through a field experiment with more than 6,000 candidates and multiple elite interviews in Denmark. The candidates received an email invitation to access a specially tailored report that randomly highlighted one of the four types of information. Statistical indicators and public opinion were accessed the most (26.9 per cent and 26.5 per cent of candidates in the two conditions). Our results provide new and important evidence about the types of information politicians consider when addressing societal problems.

The Internet has become a major source of health and nutrition information. Little is known about the type of consulted websites (institutional v. non-institutional) and the tendency to discuss with a healthcare professional (HCP) the information found on the Internet. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to investigate health- and nutrition-related Internet use in a large French population-based study. Data were collected in 2013 using self-administered, web-based questionnaires from 42 113 participants of the NutriNet-Santé study (mean age=51·2 years, 76 % women). Unconditional multivariate logistic regression analyses and χ2 tests were used for comparisons. In total, 85·1 % of the subjects used the Internet to search for health and/or nutrition information, and 23·6 % used the Internet to read or post messages on health/nutrition forums. Only 16·0 % discussed with a HCP the information found online. This proportion was lower in subjects with lower educational level (OR 0·77; 95 % CI 0·72, 0·82) and lower computer skills (OR 0·70; 95 % CI 0·65, 0·76). In total, 8038 health/nutrition websites were cited, with institutional websites representing only 12·9 % of that number. Only one institutional website was present in the top 10. Older subjects (OR 1·49; 95 % CI 1·28–1·74), those with lower educational level (OR 2·08; 95 % CI 1·75, 2·50) and lower nutritional knowledge (OR 1·33; 1·12, 1·59) were more likely to cite non-institutional websites. This large population-based study showed that institutional websites were infrequently accessed and that a few participants discussed the information found online with their HCP. This particular trend was especially visible among individuals who were more vulnerable regarding misleading information. This supports the need to increase awareness of high-quality websites providing reliable health/nutrition information.

This study examined how information seeking and proximal adjustment outcomes (role clarity and social integration) mediate the relationship between transformational leadership and distal adjustment outcome (affective organizational commitment) in work group context. The results of hierarchical linear modeling involving 212 newcomers and their 53 immediate supervisors revealed that information seeking mediated the relationship between transformational leadership and proximal adjustment outcomes. These in turn were positively related to distal adjustment outcome. Furthermore, work group structure was found to moderate the relationship between transformational leadership and newcomer information seeking.

Aim: To describe patterns of ‘online’ and ‘offline’ health information seeking in families with children under five years of age and living in five socially, economically and culturally disparate local authority (LA) wards in one inner-city area. Background: Earlier work analysed data from the five LA wards merged as one data set. A ‘digital divide’ in health information seeking was identified between parents who actively sought information from both internet websites and from 14 other health information sources (online health information seekers), and those who acquired information from a more limited range of sources excluding the internet. Of the two groups, the online health information seekers had higher levels of computer ownership and, therefore, internet access within the home. Method: Re-analysis of data (questionnaires n = 224; five focus groups; two interviews with service providers; two opportunistic conversations with service providers). Additional data were retrieved after the original data analysis and between 2005 and 2007. These data were from service user-led discussions (n = 30) held with parents in child health clinics, informal interviews (n = 11) with health visitors and semi-structured interviews (n = 2) with health visitors. Information was also retrieved from the Office for National Statistics data set. In the re-analysis, data were disaggregated at LA ward level in order to explore local influences on patterns of health information seeking. Results: Multiple layers of influence upon parental health information seeking emerged and revealed a non-digital second divide, which was independent of computer ownership and home internet access. This divide was based on preference for use of certain health information sources, which might be either ‘online’ or ‘offline’. A spatial patterning of both digital and preferential divides was identified with an association between each of these and features of the physical, social, cultural and psychosocial environment, one of which was perceived access to primary health care. Conclusion: Complex patterns of health information seeking relate to each of the ‘divides’ – digital and preferential. Patterns of health information seeking reflect differing perceptions of information availability and usefulness as experienced by parents within their local physical, social, cultural and psychosocial worlds. Access to primary care services is a key component of this local environment.