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Online behaviours, offline implications: A window into the use of the Internet for health among immigrant women in Malmo

Cassells, Alison LU (2011) SIMT27 20111
Department of Communication and Media
Master of Science in Development Studies
Graduate School
Abstract
In a country as „connected‟ as Sweden, it is hard to imagine a setting in which the Internet does not play a significant role in people‟s everyday lives. The purpose of this thesis is to analyze the use and/or awareness of online health information and services among female immigrants in Malmö, Sweden. The data collected is based on semi-structured interviews with 11 female immigrants of 7 different nationalities and two interviews with Swedish academics. The topic is approached through a feminist angle as well as a cultural studies perspective, focused specifically on Stuart Hall‟s concept of the encoding/decoding process of reading media texts. The findings suggest that immigrant women use the Internet for health in multiple and... (More)
In a country as „connected‟ as Sweden, it is hard to imagine a setting in which the Internet does not play a significant role in people‟s everyday lives. The purpose of this thesis is to analyze the use and/or awareness of online health information and services among female immigrants in Malmö, Sweden. The data collected is based on semi-structured interviews with 11 female immigrants of 7 different nationalities and two interviews with Swedish academics. The topic is approached through a feminist angle as well as a cultural studies perspective, focused specifically on Stuart Hall‟s concept of the encoding/decoding process of reading media texts. The findings suggest that immigrant women use the Internet for health in multiple and contested ways but are largely unaware of existing e-Health services. The thesis ends with policy recommendations on how best to maximize the potential of this new media for health promotion and increased health literacy, as well as for coping with the preconceived ideas and cultural expectations with which many immigrants arrive. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Cassells, Alison LU
supervisor
organization
course
SIMT27 20111
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
Internet, health, media, female immigrants, e-Health.
language
English
id
1966851
date added to LUP
2011-07-06 08:04:30
date last changed
2014-09-08 14:04:13
@misc{1966851,
  abstract     = {{In a country as „connected‟ as Sweden, it is hard to imagine a setting in which the Internet does not play a significant role in people‟s everyday lives. The purpose of this thesis is to analyze the use and/or awareness of online health information and services among female immigrants in Malmö, Sweden. The data collected is based on semi-structured interviews with 11 female immigrants of 7 different nationalities and two interviews with Swedish academics. The topic is approached through a feminist angle as well as a cultural studies perspective, focused specifically on Stuart Hall‟s concept of the encoding/decoding process of reading media texts. The findings suggest that immigrant women use the Internet for health in multiple and contested ways but are largely unaware of existing e-Health services. The thesis ends with policy recommendations on how best to maximize the potential of this new media for health promotion and increased health literacy, as well as for coping with the preconceived ideas and cultural expectations with which many immigrants arrive.}},
  author       = {{Cassells, Alison}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Online behaviours, offline implications: A window into the use of the Internet for health among immigrant women in Malmo}},
  year         = {{2011}},
}