The filter bubble and its effect on online personal health information

Holone, Harald

doi:10.3325/cmj.2016.57.298

Cited by 65 publications

(41 citation statements)

References 9 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Since a majority of the public is dependent on information on the refugee situation stemming from new and traditional media (see Chapter 7), the role of a possible online filter bubble functions as an important factor in the search for sustainable answers. Some of the previous studies testing the filter bubble hypothesis have zoomed in on other controversial yet highly socially relevant issues such as climate change (Walter et al, 2018), personal health (Holone, 2016), or elections (Vaccari et al, 2016). To our knowledge, it is the first time that the filter bubble hypothesis has been studied in the context of the refugee issue and in a cross-cultural sample (Belgium, France, the Netherlands, and Sweden).…”

Section: Digital Opportunities Vs Online Threats To Democracymentioning

confidence: 94%

Images of Immigrants and Refugees

2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The events that followed the Arab Spring-the civil war in Syria, the rise of Islamic State, and the power struggle in Libya following the death of Gaddafi-were among the factors that triggered the largest refugee crisis since the Second World War. Other events such as the political crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the persecution of the Rohingya in Myanmar, and the exodus that resulted from Venezuela's economic collapse have since made matters even worse. As a result, some 68.5 million people worldwide have been on the move through no choice of their own according to the UNHCR's latest figures; 25.4 million of those are refugees and 3.1 million are asylum seekers. Currently, the largest numbers of refugees worldwide originate from Syria (6.3 million), Afghanistan (2.6 million), and South Sudan (2.4 million). While most people who flee war and persecution remain within their country's borders, a majority of asylum seekers and refugees-fugitives who had to cross a national border-move to neighboring countries. In relative terms, Lebanon is the country that hosts the largest number of refugees: one out of six inhabitants of this small eastern Mediterranean country is a refugee. With some 3.5 million refugees, Turkey is the number one host country of refugees in absolute terms (UNHCR, 2018). While 85 percent of the world's displaced persons are located in developing countries, the West has not remained unaffected. As a consequence of armed conflicts, political and religious persecutions, and poverty, hundreds of thousands of refugees and economic migrants-including vulnerable groups such as minors, pregnant women, and disabled, diseased and elderly people-from the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia have attempted to reach Europe in recent years. This has led them on a long and deadly journey across land and sea. Starting in 2011 the numbers of asylum applicants in

show abstract

Section: Digital Opportunities Vs Online Threats To Democracymentioning

confidence: 94%

Images of Immigrants and Refugees

2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Unless one searches directly in academic databases (like PubMed, pointing to the research articles, which are in many instances “pay per view”), the results from general online searches using Google or Bing will combine quite different sources, which do not need to be directly related to relevant or evidence-based knowledge. The search results also differ between two users searching exactly the same, because they are formed by the algorithms of a particular search engine that organize and present the information, and by the individual search history as a preference (9). …”

Section: The Geography Of Knowledge Landscapes In the Digital Realmmentioning

confidence: 99%

When communicating health-related knowledge, beware of the black holes of the knowledge landscapes geography

Gajović

Svalastog²

2016

Croat Med J

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

“…In the context of health information, Holone [26] extensively problematized the phenomenon, albeit without drawing on specific empirical research. Current research on Google search indeed supports claims on search results personalization [i.e., on average 13% of search results differ; 27], albeit without considering health issues.…”

Section: Search Personalization Mechanismsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do Online Health Information Bubbles Exist? An Analysis of Personalized Google Search Results

Slechten¹,

Courtois²,

Coenen³

2017

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: There is considerable debate focusing on the consequences of online health information, which is generally related to issues such as information quality and the necessary literacy to identify such information. However, the availability of information is a prerequisite to provoke positive outcomes. Search engines inherently prioritize information. In this study, we consider the nature of the health information that is prioritized by Google. Moreover, we consider the potential occurrence of health filter bubbles, due to algorithmic personalization.Such bubbles could restrict the availability of high-quality information, and amplify user selfconfirmation.Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the nature of the information sources that are retained as results to a standardized set of health-related Google search queries and to inquire the way in which these search results reflect personalization. Methods:We harvested the personal search results of 380 Google users on 16 standardized health-related search queries. In addition, we conducted a survey measuring socio-demographic and health behavior variables. To define the nature of the collected search results we undertook a content analysis of the collected search queries, coding entries for type of website, revenue model, information authorship, and source materials.Results: An initial Latent Class Analysis (LCA) of the unique search results, based on type of website, revenue model, information authorship, and source materials showed four clusters of information types: commercial health news (33%), health goods and services (30%), user contributions (21%), and health advocacy (16%). To identify personalization, we conducted a subsequent LCA of the entire set of search results per participant. Five patterns emerge, significantly differing for the information they are composed of (i.e., 11 to 41% difference). Still, tests of covariates did not reveal any significant relations (p < .05) with user characteristics (i.e., participants' gender, age, perception of current health, frequency of searching for online health information, and the age of their Google accounts). Conclusions:The results indicate that the overall majority of health information is commercial in nature, and often lacks proper information on authorship and source materials. Moreover, we find mild evidence for the personalization of health information. However, we were unable to isolate potential grounds for this personalization.Trial Registration: We received ethical clearance from the Social and Societal Ethics Committee (SMEC) at the KU Leuven (https://admin.kuleuven.be/raden/en/smec). The clearance is registered as G-2016 01 449.

show abstract

The filter bubble and its effect on online personal health information

Cited by 65 publications

References 9 publications

Images of Immigrants and Refugees

Images of Immigrants and Refugees

When communicating health-related knowledge, beware of the black holes of the knowledge landscapes geography

Do Online Health Information Bubbles Exist? An Analysis of Personalized Google Search Results

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About