Purpose: Vocal hygiene is one of the basic parts of both preventive programs and treatment protocols for vocal health which concerns a large portion of society. Many people, including patients and their immediate surroundings, who want to learn about health issues tend to do their first research from websites operating for various purposes on the Internet. Thus, the readability and reliability of the information that these websites provide on the Internet are extremely important. While the concept of readability refers to the ease or difficulty of reading a text, quality refers to the reliability of the information in its content. Readability and quality can be calculated with objective criteria and standardized formulas. The aim of this study is to reveal the readability and quality of texts on vocal hygiene on the Internet. Method: The vocal hygiene term was typed into the Google search engine after all historical information on the search vessels was cleared. The first 100 websites with relevant content were scanned. However, only 40 of these websites met the inclusion criteria. The remaining 60 websites were excluded from the study due to the accessibility and relevancy of their contents. During the study, 40 suitable for inclusion out of 100 websites appearing on the Google search engine were examined. The readability levels of web content were evaluated by Ateşman and Çetinkaya-Uzun Readability Indexes. The quality of these sites was evaluated according to the Health on the Net code (HONcode) criteria. Results: The average score of the websites examined in the study according to the HONcode criteria was calculated as 4.73±2.51. The average readability level of these sites was calculated as 64.92±6.72 according to Ateşman Index and 46.48±2.41 according to Çetinkaya-Uzun Index. Conclusion: Considering the widespread use of the Internet and the fact that many people research health-related issues on the Internet, the importance of readability and quality levels of websites that produce health-related content is better understood. The results of this study show that the websites having texts in Turkish on vocal hygiene do not meet the expected quality standards and seem questionable in terms of readability with regard to the needs of the general public. The results of this study show the necessity of increasing the readability and quality levels of health content found on the Internet. It is thought that if similar studies take place, awareness may rise, and efforts will be made to raise the readability and quality levels of websites that produce content on health topics.
Keywords
vocal hygiene, internet, health, readibility, information quality
References
Akbulut, A. S. (2022). İnternet Ortamındaki Şeffaf Plak Tedavisi ile İlgili Bilgilerin Okunabilirlik Analizi. Necmettin Erbakan Üniversitesi Diş Hekimliği Dergisi, 4(1), 7-11.
Alwani, M. M., Campiti, V. J., Bandali, E. H., Nesemeier, B. R., Ting, J. Y., & Shipchandler, T. Z. (2020). Evaluation of the quality of printed online education materials in cosmetic facial plastic surgery. Facial Plast Surg Aesthet Med, 22(4), 255-261.
Atcı M, Tutar MS, Tosun OM, Atcı AA. & Arıkan MN. (2022). Kardiyopulmoner Resüsitasyon İle İlgili İnternet Makalelerinin Doğruluk, Yeterlilik Ve Okunabilirlik Düzeyi. Journal of Paramedic and Emergency Health Services, 3(2), 126-136.
Ateşman, E. (1997). Türkçede okunabilirliğin ölçülmesi. Dil Dergisi, 58,71-74.
Baujard, V., Boyer, C. & Geissbühler, A. (2010). Evolution of Health Web certification, through the HONcode experience. Swiss Medical Informatics, 26(69), 53-55.
Behlau, M.& Oliveira, G. (2009). Vocal hygiene for the voice professional. Current opinion in otolaryngology & head and neck surgery, 17(3), 149-154.
Boyer, C., Gaudinat, A., Hanbury, A., Appel, R. D., Ball, M. J., Carpentier, M. & Geissbühler, A. (2017). Accessing reliable health information on the Web: a review of the HON approach. Precision Healthcare through Informatics, 245, 1004-1008.
Boyer, C., Baujard, V. & Geissbuhler, A. (2011). Evolution of health web certification through the HONcode experience. Studies in Health Technology and Informatics, 169, 53-57.
Çetinkaya, G., Yenmez, A.A., Çelik, T. & Özpınar, İ. (2018). Readibility of Texts in Secondary School Mathematics Course Books. Asian Journal of Education and Training, 4(4), 250-256.
Çetinkaya, G. (2010). Türkçe metinlerin okunabilirlik düzeylerinin tanımlanması ve sınıflandırılması. (Doktora Tezi), Ankara Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Ankara.