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PROCESS

Peer Influence on (ISM) Health Choices

In today’s ‘digital India’, access and presence on the digital network is a virtual war to
establish oneself as the ‘go-to guru’ in one’s specialisation, and the health industry, as it
is referred to today, is one of the major channels in this race for digital dominance. Oral
traditions of knowledge transfer have always been an essential part of ISM. Today, for
very different reasons, however, word-of-mouth continues to be the sole means for ISM
to grow. At an age of abundance in terms of mediums of expression and communica-
tion, ISM and the effectiveness of its treatment is still not as easily accessible visually or
orally to the common user.

‘Visualization and visual analytics researchers can contribute substantial technological
advances to support the reliable, effective, safe, and validated systems required for
personal health, clinical healthcare, and public health policymaking.’ (Shneiderman
2014)

Scattered and difficult to access documentation of ISM practices and its effectiveness
further makes it difficult for users to trust or invest in the systems. Practitioners and
patients of ISM are most often recommended, or inherit the tradition of using ISM
through people they trust in, and this system of trust in peers appears to be the stron-
gest means of spreading the word on its effectiveness, despite seemingly little
conscious emphasis being laid on enhancing such systems of trust. Hence, the aspects
of human connection and the nuances of human relationships in building trust in ISM
will be a dominant theme to take forward in this project.