Social Psychology of Organizations

Merchants of Doubt. How a Handful of Scientists Obscured the Truth on Issues from Tobacco Smoke to Global Warming

The Elements of Journalism: What Newspeople Should Know and the Public Should Expect. Bill Kovach and Tom Rosenstiel. New York: Crown Publishers, 2001. 205 pp. $20 hbk. Inherent in the behavior and process we call "journalism" is controversy. Journalism's inexact, less-than-scientific character almost assures it will occasionally enter a crisis, becoming awash in change, its self-identity threatened or its credibility challenged. Just as naturally, we can depend on someone to attempt to right the ship, calm the waters, and smooth the sails. Enter The Elements of Journalism, which simply lists and details what the authors consider journalism's ten guiding principles and purpose for the enlightenment of journalists and the general public. For the former, the book serves as a Journalism 101 moral refresher: Journalism's purpose is truth, produced by those loyal to that purpose and to the citizens (not to profits). Committee of Concerned journalists Chairman Bill Kovach and Project for Excellence in journalism Director Tom Rosenstiel assert, however, that truth is not enough: There is also verification, to which they devote a chapter that's as good a reporting primer as any textbook. The authors explain "the intellectual principles of a science of reporting" gleaned from numerous discussions with and surveys of editors, journalists, and members of the public. As a CCJ member, I applaud the effort: Journalists need to be reminded of their profession's high ethical objective. Any craft-journalism included-requires a howto inventory. For the public, the book provides a glimpse into why serious journalists behave as they do; journalism has a purpose over and above selling newspapers and airtime. The lay reader discovers there is a rationale for what journalists cover and that not only is journalism a map with which to navigate society, but that good journalism strives to be accurate and comprehensive. But it is not enough to index-as the text does-all the proper characteristics. To be sure, the authors credibly explain each item. For example, they say journalists have an obligation to monitor the powerful because-as investigative reporting gets trivialized (thanks to consumer-oriented topics such as the honesty of auto brake mechanics) and challenged-journalism's function as a public forum becomes weakened, giving way to "a new wave of journalism as assertion." But as if it were Moses coming down from the Big Newsroom In The Sky, the book comes off as so many pronouncements. This is no text for a skeptic; while each element gets its due in terms of description and analysis, there is no Burning Bush-no original explanation exists for the list as a whole. By its structure, the text expects the reader to accept the idea that journalism is a recipe. The book makes a weak attempt at synthesis in the last chapter, in which the authors claim that journalists' responsibility to conscience ties all the other elements together. On its face, this makes sense: For example, what journalist would not say his or her conscience is the reason for his or her search (via journalism) for truth? But the final chapter does not engage in such analytical application of the elements, choosing instead to elaborate on the role of conscience in newsrooms and the threat certain newsroom cultures pose against individual conscience. …

The Elements of Journalism: What Newspeople Should Know and the Public Should Expect

Background: eHealth has an enormous potential to improve healthcare cost, effectiveness, and quality of care. However, there seems to be a gap between the foreseen benefits of research and clinical reality. Objective: Our objective was to systematically review the factors influencing the outcome of eHealth interventions in terms of success and failure. Methods: We searched the PubMed database for original peer-reviewed studies on implemented eHealth tools that reported on the factors for the success or failure, or both, of the intervention. We conducted the systematic review by following the patient, intervention, comparison, and outcome framework, with 2 of the authors independently reviewing the abstract and full text of the articles. We collected data using standardized forms that reflected the categorization model used in the qualitative analysis of the outcomes reported in the included articles. Results: Among the 903 identified articles, a total of 221 studies complied with the inclusion criteria. The studies were heterogeneous by country, type of eHealth intervention, method of implementation, and reporting perspectives. The article frequency analysis did not show a significant discrepancy between the number of reports on failure (392/844, 46.5%) and on success (452/844, 53.6%). The qualitative analysis identified 27 categories that represented the factors for success or failure of eHealth interventions. A quantitative analysis of the results revealed the category quality of healthcare (n=55) as the most mentioned as contributing to the success of eHealth interventions, and the category costs (n=42) as the most mentioned as contributing to failure. For the category with the highest unique article frequency, workflow (n=51), we conducted a full-text review. The analysis of the 23 articles that met the inclusion criteria identified 6 barriers related to workflow: workload (n=12), role definition (n=7), undermining of face-to-face communication (n=6), workflow disruption (n=6), alignment with clinical processes (n=2), and staff turnover (n=1). Conclusions: The reviewed literature suggested that, to increase the likelihood of success of eHealth interventions, future research must ensure a positive impact in the quality of care, with particular attention given to improved diagnosis, clinical management, and patient-centered care. There is a critical need to perform in-depth studies of the workflow(s) that the intervention will support and to perceive the clinical processes involved. [J Med Internet Res 2018;20(5):e10235]

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Factors Determining the Success and Failure of eHealth Interventions: Systematic Review of the Literature.

Analyzing older users' home telehealth services acceptance behavior - applying an Extended UTAUT model

Mobile apps for health exist in large numbers today, but oftentimes, consumers do not continue to use them after a brief period of initial usage, are averse toward using them at all, or are unaware that such apps even exist. The purpose of our study was to examine and qualitatively determine the design and content elements of health apps that facilitate or impede usage from the users’ perceptive. In 2014, six focus groups and five individual interviews were conducted in the Midwest region of the U.S. with a mixture of 44 smartphone owners of various social economic status. The participants were asked about their general and health specific mobile app usage. They were then shown specific features of exemplar health apps and prompted to discuss their perceptions. The focus groups and interviews were audio recorded, transcribed verbatim, and coded using the software NVivo. Inductive thematic analysis was adopted to analyze the data and nine themes were identified: 1) barriers to adoption of health apps, 2) barriers to continued use of health apps, 3) motivators, 4) information and personalized guidance, 5) tracking for awareness and progress, 6) credibility, 7) goal setting, 8) reminders, and 9) sharing personal information. The themes were mapped to theories for interpretation of the results. This qualitative research with a diverse pool of participants extended previous research on challenges and opportunities of health apps. The findings provide researchers, app designers, and health care providers insights on how to develop and evaluate health apps from the users’ perspective.

/pdf/a-qualitative-study-of-user-perceptions-of-mobile-health-5bo8n6b5q2.pdf

A qualitative study of user perceptions of mobile health apps

Background: Health and fitness applications (apps) are one of the major app categories in the current mobile app market. Few studies have examined this area from the users' perspective. This study adopted the Extended Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT2) Model to examine the predictors of the users' intention to adopt health and fitness apps. Materials and Methods: A survey (n=317) was conducted with college-aged smartphone users at a Midwestern university in the United States. Results: Performance expectancy, hedonic motivations, price value, and habit were significant predictors of users' intention of continued usage of health and fitness apps. However, effort expectancy, social influence, and facilitating conditions were not found to predict users' intention of continued usage of health and fitness apps. Conclusions: This study extends the UTATU2 Model to the mobile apps domain and provides health professions, app designers, and marketers with the insights of user experi...

Keep Using My Health Apps: Discover Users' Perception of Health and Fitness Apps with the UTAUT2 Model.

With the development of information and communication technologies (ICTs), there are increasingly more Internet-based communication methods available for older adults besides traditional methods (e.g., in-person or landline phone). However, older adults’ preferred communication methods remain under-investigated. The purpose of this study is to explore the communication preferences and patterns of older adults in the United States, with emphasis on technologically-mediated environments. In this study, 17 semistructured interviews were conducted with participants from a midwestern state in the United States. The goal was to examine older adults’ communication patterns and preferences with family members and friends, as well as their views about the impacts of modern technology on communication. Three themes (communication preferences and reasons, communication barriers, and the impacts of technology) were generated from the interviews. The findings showed that although face-to-face communication is ...

What do they like? Communication preferences and patterns of older adults in the United States: The role of technology

Qualitative interviews with science communication trainers (n = 24) on the role of objectives and goals in training efforts suggest that trainers believe that scientists come to training with a range of long-term goals in mind. However, trainers appear to focus on teaching communication skills and are relatively unlikely to focus on identifying specific communication objectives as a means of achieving scientists’ goals. The communication objective that trainers consistently report emphasizing is knowledge building. Other potential objectives such as fostering excitement, building trust, and reframing issues were rarely raised. Research aimed at helping trainers foster strategic communication capacity is proposed.

Qualitative Interviews With Science Communication Trainers About Communication Objectives and Goals

This study looks at how United States-based academic scientists from five professional scientific societies think about eight different communication objectives. The degree to which scientists say they would prioritize these objectives in the context of face-to-face public engagement is statistically predicted using the scientists' attitudes, normative beliefs, and efficacy beliefs, as well as demographics and past communication activity, training, and past thinking about the objectives. The data allow for questions about the degree to which such variables consistently predict views about objectives. The research is placed in the context of assessing factors that communication trainers might seek to reshape if they wanted get scientists to consider choosing specific communication objectives.

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0963662517728478

Shupei Yuan

Papers

A qualitative study of user perceptions of mobile health apps

Keep Using My Health Apps: Discover Users' Perception of Health and Fitness Apps with the UTAUT2 Model.

What do they like? Communication preferences and patterns of older adults in the United States: The role of technology

Qualitative Interviews With Science Communication Trainers About Communication Objectives and Goals

Scientists’ views about communication objectives: