Baumann Martina F, Weinberger Nora, Maia Maria, Schmid Karolin
Institute of Technology Assessment and Systems Analysis, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Karlsruhe, Germany.
Digit Health. 2023 Apr 2;9:20552076231163996. doi: 10.1177/20552076231163996. eCollection 2023 Jan-Dec.
The term consumer health technologies we use in this paper refers to fitness and health apps, wearables and other self-tracking devices that collect health-related data. Our paper aims to bridge the gap between the growing literature base of sociological research and ethical reflection on the (non-intended) effects of consumer health technology use on the psycho-social level, such as stress, responsibilization or a loss of intuitive sense for signs of health or illness. Special consideration should be given to vulnerable individuals, as the positive and negative effects of consumer health technology use may be unequally distributed. This perspective may help to guide policymaking and the responsible development of consumer health technologies.
Using a narrative review approach, we refer to empirical and theoretical studies dealing with user types and effects related to the use of consumer health technologies. We provide an overview of consumer health technology user typologies and evidence of the unintended psycho-social effects of consumer health technology use. On this basis, we propose a user typology that may serve as a future tool for ethical reflection on negative side effects.
Evidence of the potential negative side effects of consumer health technology use, as presented in the literature, is inconclusive due to the high diversity of consumer health technology users and the way they use consumer health technologies. Our proposed user typology aims to more comprehensively document the diversity of users by incorporating the way in which users identify with and use their self-tracked data, attitudes towards the new technology and social interactions via consumer health technologies, and the purpose and self-determinedness of consumer health technology use.
More systematic and quantitative empirical research on the effects of consumer health technology use in diverse settings and with diverse user types is necessary to inform public health policy. In addition to evidence-based certification of medical consumer health technologies, more practical and flexible ways to protect users from side effects may have to be developed and adopted, especially regarding the increasing number of non-medical consumer health technologies.
本文中我们所使用的“消费者健康技术”一词指的是健身与健康应用程序、可穿戴设备以及其他收集健康相关数据的自我追踪设备。本文旨在弥合社会学研究不断增长的文献基础与关于消费者健康技术使用在心理社会层面（如压力、责任化或对健康或疾病迹象的直观感觉丧失）的（非预期）影响的伦理反思之间的差距。应特别关注弱势群体，因为消费者健康技术使用的正面和负面影响可能分布不均。这一视角或许有助于指导政策制定以及消费者健康技术的负责任发展。
采用叙述性综述方法，我们参考了涉及消费者健康技术使用的用户类型及影响的实证和理论研究。我们概述了消费者健康技术用户类型学以及消费者健康技术使用的非预期心理社会影响的证据。在此基础上，我们提出一种用户类型学，它可作为未来对负面副作用进行伦理反思的工具。
鉴于消费者健康技术用户及其使用方式的高度多样性，文献中所呈现的消费者健康技术使用潜在负面副作用的证据尚无定论。我们提出的用户类型学旨在通过纳入用户认同并使用其自我追踪数据的方式、对新技术的态度以及通过消费者健康技术进行的社会互动，以及消费者健康技术使用的目的和自主性，更全面地记录用户的多样性。
有必要针对不同环境和不同用户类型下消费者健康技术使用的影响开展更系统、定量的实证研究，以为公共卫生政策提供信息。除了对医疗消费者健康技术进行基于证据的认证外，可能还需开发并采用更实际、灵活的方法来保护用户免受副作用影响，尤其是对于数量不断增加的非医疗消费者健康技术。
