BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam//NONSGML v1.0//EN NAME:PhD defence I.S. van Strien-Knippenberg METHOD:PUBLISH BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART:20260116T114500 DTEND:20260116T131500 DTSTAMP:20260116T114500 UID:2026/phd-defence-i-s-van-strie@8F96275E-9F55-4B3F-A143-836282E12573 CREATED:20260505T173332 LOCATION:VU Main Building De Boelelaan 1105 1081 HV Amsterdam SUMMARY:PhD defence I.S. van Strien-Knippenberg X-ALT-DESC;FMTTYPE=text/html:

Visualizing Personalize d Health Risk Information to Enhance Understanding

Sh owing personalized health risks is not enough: understanding requires more than an attractive visualization

The study focused on breast cancer treatment and breast ca ncer screening. Through interviews and co-creation, the researcher ex amined the ideas, expectations, and information needs of patients and citizens when they receive personalized risk information. Together w ith them, informational materials and visualizations were developed a nd subsequently tested for comprehensibility and usability. The resea rch also explored differences between people with varying levels of h ealth literacy and numeracy.

The results show that “laypeople ” approach health risks differently from experts. What seems logica l or important to professionals often does not align with what citize ns need or expect. Existing beliefs play a major role in how people i nterpret risk information. Effective communication therefore needs to connect with what people already know as well as with what they want to know.

Notably, the use of visualizations - such as graphs o r pictograms - does not automatically lead to better understanding. N or do these tools reduce the gap between people with higher and lower levels of health literacy or numeracy. Visualizations are therefore no magic solution, the study shows.

If personalized risk inform ation is not presented carefully, there is a risk that especially peo ple with lower skills will disengage or draw incorrect conclusions. T his can further widen existing health disparities. The research there fore underscores the importance of clear guidelines for risk communic ation and a structured, well-organized presentation of information.

For healthcare professionals and organizations that develop heal th information, for example for leaflets, websites, dashboards, or us e in clinical consultations, this means looking beyond simply adding attractive charts. Involving the target audience from the very beginn ing of the design process is crucial. Only by developing and testing materials together with users can it be determined whether people tru ly understand the information and can use it when making health decis ions.

Further research is needed to better support people with lower levels of health literacy and numeracy. In this way, personaliz ed risk information can contribute to better and fairer healthcare, r ather than to growing health inequalities.

More information on the thesis

DESCRIPTION:

Showing personalized health risks is not enou gh: understanding requires more than an attractive visualization

With the rapid rise of artificial intelligence and predicti ve models, citizens and patients are increasingly receiving personali zed estimates of their health risks. This information can support dec isions about treatment or prevention—but only if people truly under stand it. Research by Inge van Strien-Knippenberg shows that this is far from self-evident, and that the way risks are presented can have major societal consequences. The study focused on breast cancer treat ment and breast cancer screening. Through interviews and co-creation, the researcher examined the ideas, expectations, and information nee ds of patients and citizens when they receive personalized risk infor mation. Together with them, informational materials and visualization s were developed and subsequently tested for comprehensibility and us ability. The research also explored differences between people with v arying levels of health literacy and numeracy. The results show that “laypeople” approach health risks differently from experts. What seems logical or important to professionals often does not align with what citizens need or expect. Existing beliefs play a major role in how people interpret risk information. Effective communication theref ore needs to connect with what people already know as well as with wh at they want to know. Notably, the use of visualizations - such as gr aphs or pictograms - does not automatically lead to better understand ing. Nor do these tools reduce the gap between people with higher and lower levels of health literacy or numeracy. Visualizations are ther efore no magic solution, the study shows. If personalized risk inform ation is not presented carefully, there is a risk that especially peo ple with lower skills will disengage or draw incorrect conclusions. T his can further widen existing health disparities. The research there fore underscores the importance of clear guidelines for risk communic ation and a structured, well-organized presentation of information. F or healthcare professionals and organizations that develop health inf ormation, for example for leaflets, websites, dashboards, or use in c linical consultations, this means looking beyond simply adding attrac tive charts. Involving the target audience from the very beginning of the design process is crucial. Only by developing and testing materi als together with users can it be determined whether people truly und erstand the information and can use it when making health decisions. Further research is needed to better support people with lower levels of health literacy and numeracy. In this way, personalized risk info rmation can contribute to better and fairer healthcare, rather than t o growing health inequalities. More information on the thesis Visualizing Personalized Health Risk Information to Enhance Understa nding END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR