{"id":277,"date":"2017-09-04T19:02:16","date_gmt":"2017-09-04T19:02:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/medicalrhetoric.com\/symposium2017\/?page_id=277"},"modified":"2018-05-31T15:13:52","modified_gmt":"2018-05-31T15:13:52","slug":"candice-welhausen","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/medicalrhetoric.com\/symposium2017\/profiles\/candice-welhausen\/","title":{"rendered":"Candice Welhausen"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"CandiceTitle:\u00a0<\/strong>Assistant Professor<\/p>\n

University:\u00a0<\/strong>Auburn University<\/p>\n

Email:\u00a0<\/strong>candicew@udel.edu<\/p>\n

Twitter:\u00a0<\/strong>candicewe<\/p>\n

Website:\u00a0<\/strong>https:\/\/candicewelhausen.com<\/p>\n

Description of Work:<\/strong><\/h3>\n

My research focuses primarily on the ways that data visualizations\u00a0created to communicate quantitative risk information about epidemic disease shape how knowledge about disease, illness, and health is constructed. I\u2019m particularly\u00a0interested\u00a0in\u00a0how different\u00a0viewers (e.g.,\u00a0public\u00a0health experts and non-expert, public audiences)\u00a0may\u00a0use these\u00a0visuals to make particular kinds\u00a0of\u00a0health-related\u00a0decisions.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I am currently working on a\u00a0book project [working title \u201cThe Picture of (Public) Health: The Past, Present, and Future of Data Visualizations of Epidemic Disease\u201d], which investigates quantitative representations of epidemic disease in Western cultures and the ways in which these visuals have\u00a0been used to\u00a0constructed knowledge about disease\u00a0and illness\u00a0historically as well as in modern practice.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Symposium Submission:<\/strong><\/h3>\n

At Your Own Risk: Data Visualizations, Participatory Surveillance, and an Emergent DIY Risk Assessment Ethic\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Abstract\u00a0<\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Following its inception in the 1980s,\u00a0risk communication research\u00a0initially focused\u00a0on developing\u00a0language-based\u00a0strategies\u00a0for conveying\u00a0risk\u00a0information\u00a0to non-expert audiences.\u00a0Within the next couple of decades, however, increasing attention was directed\u00a0toward\u00a0visual\u00a0communication\u00a0like\u00a0graphics that represent\u00a0quantitative\u00a0information about health-related risks\u00a0(see\u00a0Lipkus\u00a0& Hollands,\u00a01999;\u00a0Ancker\u00a0et al., 2006).\u00a0Many of these\u00a0studies\u00a0have lent\u00a0insight\u00a0into the ways that non-experts\u00a0perceive\u00a0this\u00a0visual\u00a0information, offering design\u00a0strategies\u00a0that may be effective in achieving particular communication objectives. At the same time, this focus\u00a0on \u2018accurately\u2019 conveying\u00a0numeric risk\u00a0information\u00a0to non-experts\u00a0tends to\u00a0privilege the perspective\u00a0of\u00a0experts who\u00a0evaluate risks\u00a0primarily\u00a0through \u201cqualitative and quantitative measures\u201d (Dransch,\u00a0Rotzoll\u00a0& Poser,\u00a02010, p. 296).\u00a0In contrast, non-experts often\u00a0employ\u00a0psychometric factors (see Covello,\u00a0Peters, Wojtecki, & Hyde, 2001,\u00a0p. 385;\u00a0Fischhoff,\u00a0Slovic, Lichtenstein, Read, & Combs, 1978;\u00a0Sandman, 1987;\u00a0Slovic, 1987)\u00a0to determine\u00a0how\u00a0dangerous a risk\u00a0might be\u00a0well as how much anxiety it might invoke\u00a0(see Sandman, 2014) rather than considering how likely the risk is to occur.\u00a0Further,\u00a0research in visual risk communication\u00a0also tends to assume\u00a0that such data visualizations are usually\u00a0created\u00a0by experts\u00a0(and sometimes other professionals) and then\u00a0disseminated to\u00a0non-experts\u00a0who\u00a0play\u00a0no\u00a0role\u00a0in the construction of this information.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In this paper, I\u00a0argue that the emergence of\u00a0participatory\u00a0surveillance\u00a0technologies\u00a0in the past ten years\u00a0like\u00a0wearable fitness devices\u00a0and\u00a0digital\u00a0apps that\u00a0track\u00a0potential\u00a0public\u00a0health threats (e.g., HealthMap, Flu Near You, Sick Weather)\u00a0disrupts\u00a0how\u00a0the creation of\u00a0visual\u00a0risk communication has\u00a0traditionally been understood. Prompted in part\u00a0by technological advances,\u00a0the\u00a0move toward a patient-centered model of care\u00a0(Institute of Medicine, 2001), and\u00a0the growing emphasis on preventative medicine\u00a0(e.g., Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, 2017),\u00a0I suggest that\u00a0participatory\u00a0surveillance\u00a0technologies\u00a0have\u00a0facilitated a\u00a0\u201cdo-it-yourself\u00a0(DIY)\u201d risk assessment ethic.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

More specifically,\u00a0many fitness and health\u00a0trackers\u00a0now allow users to\u00a0collect, visualize, and analyze information about a wide range of physical and mental health indictors:\u00a0diet, activity,\u00a0sleep quantity and quality, mindfulness. Some\u00a0of these\u00a0behaviors\u2014diet and activity, for instance\u2014have been linked to developing\u00a0chronic health conditions\u00a0later in life\u00a0like diabetes and cardiovascular disease. By tracking\u00a0select health-related\u00a0behaviors through\u00a0apps linked to these\u00a0devices, users\u00a0can\u00a0visualize\u00a0patterns and trends in their overall lifestyle choices.\u00a0This information in turn can then be used to make particular kinds of decisions\u00a0like engaging in healthy eating\u00a0habits, reducing one\u2019s salt intake, and\/or getting more exercise in order to reduce the risk of developing\u00a0a chronic disease.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In a somewhat similar vein,\u00a0participatory\u00a0disease-tracking\u00a0systems\u00a0like healthmap.org\u00a0and\u00a0flunearyou.org\u00a0allow\u00a0public audiences to\u00a0simultaneously\u00a0contribute\u00a0to\u00a0and\u00a0visualize\u00a0risk information about potential public health threats.\u00a0Flu Near You, for example,\u00a0was\u00a0developed by a team of public health researchers and information technological professionals and\u00a0enables\u00a0the general public to voluntarily\u00a0report flu-related symptoms\u00a0they may be experiencing. Registered participants can submit weekly\u00a0flu\u00a0reports and then use the\u00a0program\u2019s\u00a0user-contributed mapping feature to \u201cknow when the flu is around\u201d in order to\u00a0visually assess their risk.\u00a0Indeed\u00a0results from a\u00a0user survey\u00a0conducted\u00a0by the program\u00a0and shared with me\u00a0(C.\u00a0Nyugen, personal communication, August 17, 2016)\u00a0suggest that this feature is particularly\u00a0important for some participants.\u00a0As one respondent\u00a0positively stated: \u201cI\u00a0love\u00a0FluNearYou\u00a0and depend on the reports to see what is happening with the Flu around my\u00a0area!,\u201d\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

At the same time,\u00a0the use of such\u00a0technologies\u00a0also\u00a0does\u00a0not invalidate or otherwise render\u00a0visual numeric information about health risks created by experts obsolete\u00a0or unimportant.\u00a0In\u00a0the first half of\u00a02016, for instance,\u00a0as the\u00a0\u201cpandemic potential\u201d\u00a0increased for\u00a0Zika, (Lucey & Gostin, 2016, p. 865) a mosquito-borne virus that has been linked\u00a0to\u00a0some\u00a0severe neurological conditions\u00a0(CDC, 2016),\u00a0public health agencies created\u00a0a number of\u00a0thematic maps targeted to non-experts\u00a0that communicated visual risk information\u00a0about the spread of the virus. Rather,\u00a0I propose that\u00a0visual risk information created through\u00a0participatory surveillance\u00a0efforts\u00a0affords non-experts the agency\u00a0to\u00a0identify, measure,\u00a0and assess\u00a0risks\u00a0in ways that they believe are most applicable to them, essentially enabling\u00a0these readers\/viewers\u00a0to curate their\u00a0own risk information experience.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

References\u00a0<\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Ancker, J. S.,\u00a0Senathiraja, Y.,\u00a0Kukafka, R., &\u00a0Starren, J.B. (2006). Design features of graphics in health risk communication: A systematic review.\u00a0Journal of the Medical Informatics Association,<\/i>\u00a013<\/i>(6), 608-618. Retrieved\u00a0from\u00a0http:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pmc\/articles\/PMC1656964\/<\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2016). Zika virus. Health effects and risks. Retrieved from\u00a0https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/zika\/healtheffects\/index.html<\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Covello, V. T., Peters, R. G., Wojtecki, J. G., & Hyde, R. C. (2001). Risk communication, the West Nile virus epidemic, and bioterrorism: Responding to the communication challenges posed by the intentional or unintentional release of a pathogen in an urban setting.\u00a0Journal of Urban Health: Bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine<\/i>,\u00a078<\/i>(2), 382-91.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Dransch, D.,\u00a0Rotzoll, H., & Poser, K. (2010). The contribution of maps to the challenges of risk communication to the public.\u00a0International Journal of Digital Earth<\/i>,\u00a03<\/i>(3), 292-311.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Fischhoff, B.,\u00a0Slovic, P., Lichtenstein, S., Read, S., & Combs, B. (1978). How safe is safe enough? A psychometric study of attitudes towards technological risks and benefits.\u00a0Policy Sciences<\/i>,\u00a09<\/i>(2), 127-152.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Institute of Medicine (2001). Crossing the quality chasm: A new health system for the 21st<\/span>\u00a0century. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Lipkus, I. M., & Hollands, J. G. (1999). The visual communication of risk.\u00a0Journal of the National Cancer\u00a0Institutes\u00a0Monographs,<\/i>\u00a025<\/i>, 149-163.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Lucey, D. R., & Gostin, L. O. (2016). The emerging Zika pandemic: enhancing preparedness.\u00a0JAMA<\/i>,\u00a0315<\/i>(9), 865-866.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. (2017). HealthyPeople.gov Retrieved from https:\/\/www.healthypeople.gov\/\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Sandman, P. (1987). Risk communication: Facing public outrage.\u00a0EPA Journal<\/i>, 21-22. Retrieved from\u00a0http:\/\/www.psandman.com\/articles\/facing.htm<\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Sandman, P. M. (2014). Dr. Peter M. Sandman Introduction to risk communication and orientation to this website. Retrieved from\u00a0http:\/\/www.psandman.com\/index-intro.htm<\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Slovic, P. (1987). Perception of Risk.\u00a0Science<\/i>\u00a0New Series<\/i>,\u00a0236\u00a0<\/i>(4799), 280-285.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Title:\u00a0Assistant Professor University:\u00a0Auburn University Email:\u00a0candicew@udel.edu Twitter:\u00a0candicewe Website:\u00a0https:\/\/candicewelhausen.com Description of Work: My research focuses primarily on the ways that data visualizations\u00a0created to communicate quantitative risk information about epidemic disease shape how … Continue reading “Candice Welhausen”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":2,"menu_order":52,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-277","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/medicalrhetoric.com\/symposium2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/277","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/medicalrhetoric.com\/symposium2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/medicalrhetoric.com\/symposium2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medicalrhetoric.com\/symposium2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medicalrhetoric.com\/symposium2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=277"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/medicalrhetoric.com\/symposium2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/277\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":795,"href":"https:\/\/medicalrhetoric.com\/symposium2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/277\/revisions\/795"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medicalrhetoric.com\/symposium2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/medicalrhetoric.com\/symposium2017\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=277"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}