Ubiquity of cyberchondria among Teachers: the case of basic and higher education institution (HEI) Teachers in Southern Philippines

Abstract

The internet is a potential source of medical information. However, it can also be a source of increased anxiety and distress among people. This anxiety due to excess searching for medical information online is known as cyberchondria. Even before the COVID-19 global pandemic, research suggest that teachers’ performance and productivity can also be negatively influenced by stress and anxiety. This study aimed to evaluate the cyberchondria constructs among teachers in the basic and higher education institutions in Cagayan de Oro City using the Cyberchondria Severity Scale (CSS-15). Data are collected among the 143 basic and higher education teacher-respondents and results revealed that the majority of them are affected with compulsion (81.81%), distress (93.71%), excessiveness (98.6%) and reassurance (90.91%) constructs of cyberchondria with excessiveness construct being severely affected. There are only 28.67% of the teacher-respondents who are affected by mistrust of a medical professional. Further analysis showed that the cyberchondria constructs are independent and teachers from the basic and higher education institutions shared the same level of cyberchondriasis. Hence, it can be concluded that there is a high prevalence of cyberchondria among teachers and it is recommended that strategic interventions and measures need to be designed and implemented by school administrators to preserve teachers’ wellbeing and foster positive teaching performance and students’ learning outcomes.