Characteristics of Arabic Websites with information on autism

OBJECTIVES: To explore the characteristics of Arabic websites with information on autism spectrum disorder (ASD). METHODS: The word autism in Arabic was entered into 2 popular search engines in September 2013 to locate the top 80 websites featuring the term. Websites were sorted using 10 characteris...

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Autores principales: Alnemary, Fahad M., Alnemary, Faisal M., Alamri, Abdulrahman S., Alamri, Yassar A.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Riyadh : Armed Forces Hospital 2017
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5726822/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28416788
http://dx.doi.org/10.17712/nsj.2017.2.20160574
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author Alnemary, Fahad M.
Alnemary, Faisal M.
Alamri, Abdulrahman S.
Alamri, Yassar A.
author_facet Alnemary, Fahad M.
Alnemary, Faisal M.
Alamri, Abdulrahman S.
Alamri, Yassar A.
author_sort Alnemary, Fahad M.
collection PubMed
description OBJECTIVES: To explore the characteristics of Arabic websites with information on autism spectrum disorder (ASD). METHODS: The word autism in Arabic was entered into 2 popular search engines in September 2013 to locate the top 80 websites featuring the term. Websites were sorted using 10 characteristics, previously used to evaluate the characteristics of English websites with information on ASD. RESULTS: Most websites were registered using a.com top-level domain (69%), were an individual’s site, forum, or blog (44%), and were updated after September 2012 (60%); they contained images or texts that seemed to persuade viewers to purchase products (43%); they provided information with the name of author(s) (64%); they described the basic characteristics of ASD; and they promoted various types of treatments, most of which lack empirical support (63%). However, few websites contained information with references to peer review resources (3%) or a warning statement that such information should not replace the opinion of a qualified professional (8%). CONCLUSION: Internet users may not find Arabic websites to be reliable sources to obtain information on ASD. Given the increased use of the internet, creation of websites that contain trusted information on ASD could potentially aid parents in accessing available services, help them learn about empirically validated interventions, and enable them to advocate for their children’s rights.
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spelling pubmed-57268222017-12-18 Characteristics of Arabic Websites with information on autism Alnemary, Fahad M. Alnemary, Faisal M. Alamri, Abdulrahman S. Alamri, Yassar A. Neurosciences (Riyadh) Brief Communication OBJECTIVES: To explore the characteristics of Arabic websites with information on autism spectrum disorder (ASD). METHODS: The word autism in Arabic was entered into 2 popular search engines in September 2013 to locate the top 80 websites featuring the term. Websites were sorted using 10 characteristics, previously used to evaluate the characteristics of English websites with information on ASD. RESULTS: Most websites were registered using a.com top-level domain (69%), were an individual’s site, forum, or blog (44%), and were updated after September 2012 (60%); they contained images or texts that seemed to persuade viewers to purchase products (43%); they provided information with the name of author(s) (64%); they described the basic characteristics of ASD; and they promoted various types of treatments, most of which lack empirical support (63%). However, few websites contained information with references to peer review resources (3%) or a warning statement that such information should not replace the opinion of a qualified professional (8%). CONCLUSION: Internet users may not find Arabic websites to be reliable sources to obtain information on ASD. Given the increased use of the internet, creation of websites that contain trusted information on ASD could potentially aid parents in accessing available services, help them learn about empirically validated interventions, and enable them to advocate for their children’s rights. Riyadh : Armed Forces Hospital 2017-04 /pmc/articles/PMC5726822/ /pubmed/28416788 http://dx.doi.org/10.17712/nsj.2017.2.20160574 Text en Copyright: © Neurosciences http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ Neurosciences is an Open Access journal and articles published are distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License (CC BY-NC). Readers may copy, distribute, and display the work for non-commercial purposes with the proper citation of the original work.
spellingShingle Brief Communication
Alnemary, Fahad M.
Alnemary, Faisal M.
Alamri, Abdulrahman S.
Alamri, Yassar A.
Characteristics of Arabic Websites with information on autism
title Characteristics of Arabic Websites with information on autism
title_full Characteristics of Arabic Websites with information on autism
title_fullStr Characteristics of Arabic Websites with information on autism
title_full_unstemmed Characteristics of Arabic Websites with information on autism
title_short Characteristics of Arabic Websites with information on autism
title_sort characteristics of arabic websites with information on autism
topic Brief Communication
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5726822/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28416788
http://dx.doi.org/10.17712/nsj.2017.2.20160574
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