What do patients and caretakers need from websites with health information? Rather than using a questionnaire instrument, these researchers used a repertory grid technique. Participants were asked to explore groups of three websites and name the ways in which two were similar and one was different. These names represented constructs. Participants were then asked to rate the websites against these constructs using a five-point scale. Participants were also asked to rate overall each website from very good to very poor.

Radial charts are used to illustrate the data obtained. For example, Figure 2 shows that asthma patient 13 disliked a blog style to convey patient experiences. Figure 5 shows that multiple sclerosis caretaker 9 appreciated good coverage of caretaker difficulties. A total of 148 constructs were identified from 14 asthma patients and 9 multiple sclerosis caretakers. This range of constructs led the researchers to make the observation that individuals look for different things from websites. Most readers will agree with the authors’ conclusion that the selection of health information is no longer an externally guided process, but one that increasingly reflects personal values.

The methods and results are not as well reported as they might have been. How many groups of three websites did each participant work with? Was the five-minute exploration of each website undertaken separately from the phase of the investigation that identified constructs? Why were descriptive statistics of overall website rankings not provided?

This paper is recommended to designers of websites with health information.