Social value and information quality in online health information search

This research-in-progress paper extends and validates a model of value-driven online health information (OHI) search and reuse in personal and online sharing contexts. Perceived value is an important factor behind users’ decisions concerning search, consumption and reuse of products and services. The role of utilitarian, epistemic, and hedonic value of information is well-recognized in user satisfaction and subsequent intention to repeat online search. However, research till date show little support for social value, which is a critical driver of user satisfaction and decisions about continuance and information sharing. Therefore, a value-based model of OHI search is extended with detailed information quality and information value measures. Initial results from the survey data collected from 193 college students from 22 countries studying in South Korea demonstrated two novel results. At first, unlike existing studies, good support was found for the effect of perceived social value on user satisfaction. However, the significance of social value could only be appreciated by using comprehensive constructs of information quality. Secondly, it was noted when satisfied users make their decisions to repeat OHI search or information sharing on internet and digital social networks, they consider representation and context quality of health information more than intrinsic and access quality. Therefore, developers and organizations interested in traction of their internet and social media based healthcare information systems (HIS) should focus on enhancing the information quality of their websites and systems accordingly.