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Building upon a framework of the unified theory of acceptance and use of technology, this study explores the determinants of citizens' intentions to use the government's mobile application for public health risk communication. An online survey was conducted with a quota sample of 700 Korean citizens. The results from structural equation modeling suggest that social media competence and trust in government information are primary determinants of willingness to accept the new application and intention to use it. Trust in government information appeared to influence the acceptance of the application both directly and indirectly through performance expectancy and effort expectancy. More confidence in the use of social media led to higher levels of performance expectancy, effort expectancy, and facilitating conditions, all of which subsequently contributed to willingness to accept the application. The acceptance of the application further influenced intention to use the application and the likelihood of positive recommendations. The findings suggest that while developing applications that meet public expectations for informational benefits and time efficiency is important, it is also necessary for the government to build trust and improve citizens' ability to use new tools in order for new information technology initiatives to fully benefit citizens.

This study explored health organizations' public relations efforts to frame health issues through their press releases. Content analysis of 316 press releases from three health organizations-the American Heart Association, the American Cancer Society, and the American Diabetes Association-revealed that they used the medical research frame most frequently and emphasized societal responsibility for health issues. There were differences, however, among the organizations regarding the main frames and health issues: the American Diabetes Association was more likely to focus on the issues related to social support and education, while the American Heart Association and the American Cancer Society were more likely to address medical research and scientific news. To demonstrate their initiatives for public health, all the organizations employed the social support/educational frame most frequently. Researchers and medical doctors frequently were quoted as trusted sources in the releases.

This study examined how major health organizations use Twitter for disseminating health information, building relationships, and encouraging actions to improve health. The sampled organizations were the American Heart Association, American Cancer Society, and American Diabetes Association. A content analysis was conducted on 1,583 tweets to examine these organizations' use of Twitter's interactive features and to understand the message functions and topics of their tweets. The numbers of retweets and favorites were also measured as engagement indicators and compared by different message functions. The results revealed that all of the organizations posted original tweets most, but they differed in the degree to which they used the retweet and reply functions. Hashtags and hyperlinks were the most frequently used interactive tools. The majority of the tweets were about organization-related topics, whereas personal health-related tweets represented a relatively small portion of the sample. Followers were most likely to like and retweet personal health action-based messages.

This study explored health-related organizations' use of Twitter in delivering health literacy messages. A content analysis of 571 tweets from health-related organizations revealed that the organizations' tweets were often quoted or retweeted by other Twitter users. Nonprofit organizations and community groups had more tweets about health literacy than did other types of health-related organizations examined, including health business corporations, educational institutions, and government agencies. Tweets on health literacy topics focused predominantly on using simple language rather than complicated language. The results suggest that health organizations need a more strategic approach to managing positive organizational self-presentations in order to create an optimal level of exposure on social networking sites.