Communication, Mediation, and the Expectations of Data: Data Valences Across Health and Wellness Communities

Authors

  • Brittany Fiore-Gartland University of Washington
  • Gina Neff University of Washington and Central European University

Keywords:

big data, health communication, communication technology, qualitative methods, ethnography, theory

Abstract

Communication technologies increasingly mediate data exchanges rather than human communication. We propose the term data valences to describe the differences in expectations that people have for data across different social settings. Building on two years of interviews, observations, and participation in the communities of technology designers, clinicians, advocates, and users for emerging mobile data in formal health care and consumer wellness, we observed the tensions among these groups in their varying expectations for data. This article identifies six data valences (self-evidence, actionability, connection, transparency, “truthiness,” and discovery) and demonstrates how they are mediated and how they are distinct across different social domains. Data valences give researchers a tool for examining the discourses around, practices with, and challenges for data as they are mediated across social settings.

Author Biographies

Brittany Fiore-Gartland, University of Washington

Moore/Sloan Data Science Postdoctoral Fellow and Washington Research Foundation Innovation Postdoctoral Fellow. Human Centered Design & Engineering, University of Washington.

Gina Neff, University of Washington and Central European University

Associate Professor, Department of Communication, UW and Associate Professor, School of Public Policy, CEU

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Published

2015-05-14

Issue

Vol. 9 (2015)

Section

Articles

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