Consumer Health Information Needs in the Rural Northwest:
A Value-Sensitive Design Approach (2001 - 2003)

The study was based on value sensitive design (VSD)—a framework proposed by Batya Friedman and colleagues (1997; Forthcoming; Friedman, et. al., 2002; Friedman & Kahn, 2003). VSD is a principled and comprehensive approach to designing technologies and services that centers around human well-being and reflects different core human values. It enables one to identify the values held by different stakeholders regarding a particular phenomenon—such as interpersonal information sources—and then incorporate these values in information technologies and services such that they support human behavior. Standard values derived from past VSD studies conducted by Friedman and colleagues include welfare, quality of life, sociability, freedom of expression, self-actualization and autonomy, trust, and privacy.

Our study was conducted over three stages. First, focus groups were held with 15 local healthcare and information providers about their perceptions of their clients’ health information needs. Second, an initial interview guide was designed and pre-tested with 26 local residents. Based on responses from those data, a second, more condensed interview guide was developed and used to conduct in-person interviews with another 18 residents (grand total of 44). Prior to visiting Yakima Valley, local websites and other resources were examined to gain extensive background about different human services and the community.

While papers from this project are under peer review, in brief and as shown in Table 1, 14 value-related factors appeared to influence participants’ information behavior. While access was the value of greatest importance to consumers, Non-People Resources and Non-People Factors aroused value conflicts: consumers wanted accurate, thorough, comprehensive, and individualized information, but they also wanted it quickly–despite compromising authority. Consumers sought advice and acted upon information from individuals with whom they had relationships without questioning the accuracy or thoroughness of the information. Thus, great opportunity exists with helping consumers seek and use information. As shown in the Value Matrix in Table 2, data were further analyzed by the degree (high, medium, low) to which consumers valued different factors. This value-sensitive approach to understanding information behavior will be explored further in future studies.