Factors affecting perception of Indian adolescent students toward interactive online mental health information during COVID-19

Purpose This study aims to identify the critical factors affecting the perception of adolescent students toward interactive online mental health information available on health-related websites. Design/methodology/approach The primary data was collected with the help of an online self-structured questionnaire. The questionnaire includes the identified variables extracted from previous literature related to the mental health information websites using the Likert scale. The respondents include the adolescent school students belonging to the northern region of India: semi-urban/rural locations of Uttar Pradesh (Agra and Mathura) and urban cities (Faridabad, Gaziabad, Delhi and NCR). The criteria for selecting respondents were that students must have visited any online health information-related websites at least once. Exploratory factor analysis was used to explore the factors with the help of SPSS.20. Findings The identified factors that include information delivery medium/mode, websites' navigation structure, customized information or content, ability to form a virtual relationship and supplementary features of the websites may benefit the health communication system of any country and the health-care industry. Research limitations/implications There are some limitations such as a limited number of respondents and even on that sample was taken for teenagers; thereby creating fewer generalizations related to the present context. Further, only exploratory factor analysis is applied in the study to identify the factors but future researchers may proceed to develop the conceptual model of perception toward online information with the help of confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling techniques. Practical implications The results of this study are useful for government officials especially those related to the ministry of health care and public health organizations of various countries, who usually invest in co-designing authentic, reliable and high interactive online information-sharing websites. Social implications The results of this study are helpful for government officials, especially those related to the ministry of health care and public health organizations of various countries, who usually invest in co-designing authentic, reliable and high interactive online information-sharing websites. Originality/value The study is unique as it provides insight into the opinion of the adolescent students, primarily upon encountering the online mental health information concerning the Indian perspective. Future researchers, health-care policymakers and health-care professionals may use the study to capture a complete picture of a relevant phenomenon in their work.