Health infomediaries are online interactive platforms where patients learn about diseases, procedures, and treatments, but how the learning dynamics evolve to help patients make decisions is unknown. Investigating patient learning in health information is essential to enabling patient empowerment using these platforms. In this study, we theoretically anchor patients’ learning processes in a health infomediary to Nonaka-Takeuchi’s Socialization, Externalization, Combination, and Internalization (SECI) learning dynamics model, with the infomediary as the ba or collaborative space for learning. We posit that questions reflect externalization for a focal learning patient, while reviews and comments reflect socialization, driving patients’ knowledge internalization. Learning with more information aids patients in health-relevant choices and actions such as a doctor consultation in a health infomediary. Three hypotheses about continued learning choices are presented and tested using data from 8,900 reconstructive surgery health infomediary users, using a multichoice mixed logit model with panel estimations. Findings show patients continue to review and comment more than questions to learn about trendy surgeries, which is counterintuitive to existing insights, whereas questions lead to learning sentiment-laden information. Exploratory analyses suggest that learning through reviews regarding post-procedural services may deter, but other learning modes motivate patients to consult a doctor. We discuss the theoretical contributions and implications for infomediary design and research.

Due to the growing need to continually generate customer value, firms must be flexible to address changing business environments and customer expectations. Although research has examined Information Technology (IT) flexibility, the nuances of IT flexibility in services have received limited attention. This study uses a three-stage roadmap to build digital service flexibility. First, using prior research on services and IT flexibility, we articulate three dimensions for digital services flexibility (DSF): core DSF, transaction DSF, and customer DSF. Second, we propose a theoretical customer-service value framework as a blueprint for service firms to align their strategies along these three DSF dimensions using four propositions. Third, for DSF to be applied in practice, we discuss contextual and situational embeddedness to support digital transformation for services. We use a practical application of DSF using a multi-year case study that aligns service innovations inside and outside a patient room in a hospital setting. The main contributions of this study lie in a) conceptualizing digital service flexibility and identifying its three dimensions, b) proposing a conceptual framework highlighting how firms can use DSF in alignment with their business strategy, and c) illustrating how the concept of DSF applies in a hospital setting.

Increasingly, people are turning to the internet to access health information despite reports that sites vary in terms of their quality, especially when the health practice is emerging or exclusive, such as stem cell and umbilical cord blood therapy. Given the controversy, patients have to depend on available sources to validate their knowledge prior to going for these practices as treatments. This study explores how the internet supports the spread of stem cell therapy practices, viewing it from a knowledge validation theoretical perspective. The study posits hypotheses differentiating digital and human sources, trust in the media source, and exploratory and verification sources on knowledge validation for exclusive practices. Primary survey data was collected from the US and Kuwait. Key findings suggest that knowledge verification and trust in the internet influences knowledge conversion and the practice decision of patients for less practice-oriented knowledge, and this effect is higher for Kuwait than USA, and more so for stem cell than umbilical cord blood practice.

In this study, the authors examine how the internet is changing two critical personal value dimensions of India's youth. Based on values theory, and using data that spans a decade from 2004-2014, they contend that time spent on the internet is an influential factor in changing self-enhancement and self-transcendence values. Given the tremendous increase in exposure to western products, ideals, and people-to-people interaction via internet connectivity (India has over 275 million internet users who communicate in the English language), the authors posit that young Indian consumers would adopt values associated with self-enhancement and individualism, forsaking self-transcendence related ideals. Data pertaining to the Rokeach value scales were collected in New Delhi, and the results support the notion that these values have indeed changed substantially in such a short amount of time, largely due to IT as opposed to other media vehicles such as TV, and print media. Implications of this noteworthy change in values due to the internet in a relatively short period are discussed.