Social technologies and their data are increasingly being used as tools in public health/medical research and practice. Examples include social media, mobile apps, internet searches, and wearable sensors. We will present some of our team's research on how these tools can be used to predict and change health behaviors, and on implementation-related issues such as policy, clinical, and ethical questions. The studies involve populations affected by HIV, mental health and substance use disorders, car crashes, and COVID-19.
Learning Objectives:
- Review how social technologies and their data are being used in public health/medical research, policy, and practice
- Discover methods for using "social data" for surveillance
- Examine methods for using online communities, such as the HOPE intervention, to change health behaviors
