Patients think if health Web sites are pretty, they must be smart

Two studies of Internet health sites reveal that users who lack medical knowledge tend to rely on look and design to measure credibility.

By Tyler Chin, AMNews staff. Nov. 25, 2002.

Physicians say you can't judge a health Web site by its cover, but patients don't agree.

Nearly 42% of consumers tend to view online health information as credible based on some aspect of a site's visual design, according to a study commissioned by Consumer WebWatch and led by Stanford University's Persuasive Technology Lab. But another Consumer WebWatch study, led by Sliced Bread Design LLC, found that only 7.6% of health experts even took note of a site's design, tending to rely on substance over style.

The finding is consistent with previous research showing that patients and physicians perceive quality from opposite ends. Lacking medical training, patients judge the skill and professionalism of physicians by what doctors wear, their bedside manner and the décor and cleanliness of their exam and waiting rooms. Doctors, on the other hand, judge each other based on their quality of care.

The findings suggest that, while the growing number of physicians with Web sites -- by the AMA's last count, 29% of doctors -- may get their peers' respect with solid information, they could retain or gain additional patients if they pay attention to layout, typography, font size, color schemes and other visual design details that patients think make sites look professional and polished.

The studies also shed some light on why even the most educated patients might bring seemingly obviously shoddy information to their physicians' attention.

"The study clearly shows that people put a lot of emphasis on the visual design of a Web site in determining whether the site is credible or not. We didn't expect to find that," said B.J. Fogg, PhD, lead author of "How Do People Evaluate a Web Site's Credibility?" and director of Stanford's Persuasive Technology Lab. [...]