Health Information Literacy as a Tool for Addressing Adolescent Behaviors, Knowledge, Skills, and Academic Trajectories

Abstract

Health education and information outreach programs, implemented through in-school and afterschool settings, can positively impact adolescent functioning at a variety of levels. This chapter reviews research connecting health knowledge to health behavior and outcomes, while claiming that personal health is only one desirable outcome of health education. Viewing health as situated in a community context and largely determined by social and cultural factors, the chapter discusses the impact of scientifically sound, socially oriented health education on leadership, informed citizenship, community advocacy, and career interests. It also addresses the role of technology and health informatics in delivering effective health education by providing quality content as well as tools for adolescents' creative endeavors. Finally, the chapter reviews four broad-impact health information projects at the National Library of Medicine (NLM) targeting adolescents in primarily minority, low-income communities.