Information Interaction of Pregnant Women in Ninisite

Background and Aim: Pregnant women are the most active users of health information with regard to the growing use of the Internet as an important source of information. This research studies the information interactions of pregnant women in Ninisite forum, andis to create awareness of pregnant women. This site is the largest Persian-language site for women's issues, pregnancy and parenting. Methods: This applied research uses qualitative content analysis and semiotic analysis techniques. Content analysis method was used to identify the topics of the exchanged messages. Semiotic method was used to explore the dimensions of trust between users. All messages in the two sections of before and during pregnancy in a 6-month period (from October to March 2013) were studied. Results: Analyzing two forums related to before and during pregnancy showed that users talk about different aspects of life. Medical, sales, education, recreation, friendships and communing, religion and lifestyle and empathy were the main themes of discussions. Most common information needs of women are: infertility disorders, diagnosis and treatment, the symptoms and complications of pregnancy, the fetus disorders, the pregnancy and delivery and birth. Cognitive and affective dimensions were the main components of trust among users. Conclusion: Results reveals the potential of forums for information exchange, therefore, applying forums for the dissemination of health information is recommended. It is also important that health officials control the quality of health information on the web.