Digital Search and Health Insurance Literacy in the U.S.

Abstract

This research focuses on the impact of digital search on health information, primarily health insurance and health insurance literacy (HIL). Through the use of a Google search simulation software, this study examined the health insurance search of young adults 18-25 and evaluated their literacy using the health insurance literacy measure (HILM). With the marketing of AI to mass audiences and its introduction as a tool for search, this study incorporated AI into the search simulation and measured whether it impacted the development of HIL for the participants.

Amanda Lockett

Department of Information Science, University of South Carolina

Amanda Lockett is a writer, scholar, and community organizer currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Information Science at the University of South Carolina. Her research focus is health information with a focus on cultural wellness archives and health technology systems. She is currently studying the work and record keeping practices of birth workers and maternal health experts. Currently, Amanda serves as the project manager and lead student for the university’s information science AI/AGI lab. Here, she has helped to design and implement research around health insurance, skin cancer, cognitive bias and search evaluation. Amanda has a background in education and linguistics and is excited about bringing her work in information science and health information to the communities and people she has and does serve.

Samaneh Borji

Department of Information Science, University of South Carolina

Samaneh Borji is a Ph.D. student in Information Science at the University of South Carolina, with experience in research, teaching and technology integration. She has been involved in various research projects, including social media data analysis and AI applications, particularly focusing on user experience studies. At the AI and AGI Lab, she has contributed to projects to explore human-computer interaction. Borji also has a background in programming and data visualization, which she has applied to her research. She is passionate about improving information literacy and studying how online misinformation spreads.