Stories

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Design Hypothesis 3: Personal informatics tools that expose users to their peers’ stories will allow users to acquire information that modifies their self-efficacy and outcome expectations to perform the health behavior.

Stories are a powerful way people connect and learn. Listening to peer health stories helped people understand how to start being active. Stories do more than just teach steps — they also share emotions and norms that show what society values.

In other words, stories from similar peers provide three key types of information that support healthy behavior:

  1. Task information — how to perform the health behavior,
  2. Emotional information — the positive feelings that come from the behavior, and
  3. Normative information — that the behavior is valued by others.

The power of stories

Although both data and stories contain information, they work through different ways of knowing (Bruner, 1986). Data fit the pragmatic mode — they are abstract and numerical, making it easier for users to compare themselves to peers and set goals, which can build confidence (self-efficacy). Stories fit the narrative mode — they share human experiences, showing the challenges, emotions, and social values tied to a behavior.

Both data and stories helped participants, and using them together is more powerful than using either alone. Peer data guides goal-setting, while peer stories help people learn complex health behavior.

Process

A chart that shows Stories conveys three things: Task, Emotional, and Normative Behavioral Information. Task Information enhances Self-Efficacy. Emotional and Normative Behavioral Information enhances Outcome Expectations. Self-Efficacy and Outcome Expectations support Action.

Peers’ Stories support Self-efficacy and Outcome Expectations by conveying task, emotional, and normative behavioral information. Dotted lines show hypothesized relationships.

Design Recommendations

Recommendation 3.1. Enable story sharing to help users develop the skills needed to perform the health behavior
Peer stories help users learn how to perform healthy behaviors by sharing practical tips and emotional encouragement. Show that stories make health behaviors feel more achievable and relatable.

Recommendation 3.2. Enable story sharing to positively shift social norms
Stories do more than give meaning to actions — they can also shift social norms. Research shows that sharing stories can promote healthy behaviors, challenge false beliefs, validate personal experiences, and help disadvantaged groups push back against injustices. Overall, stories can drive both personal and social change.

Recommendation 3.3. Enable digital spaces where telling health stories is the norm
Users could feel uncomfortable telling health stories if it’s not the platform’s norm, and storytelling is a skill many are not trained in. Research shows that using prompts or digital tools like stickers can make sharing easier. To encourage health storytelling, digital platforms should create spaces where sharing health experiences feels normal and supported.

Recommendation 3.4. Match users with similar peers
Similar peers are important for both data exposure and health storytelling. Matching users with storytellers who share similar backgrounds makes the stories more relatable and helpful for guiding behavior, as shown in several studies (e.g., Saksono et al., 2023). People are more motivated when they can see themselves in the person sharing the story, especially if they share similar experiences and challenges.

Recommendation 3.5. Consider using stories to counter structural barriers
Digital storytelling allows disadvantaged communities to share their experiences and push back against injustices. Stories connect personal struggles to a collective narrative, helping build collective identity and motivating action. They also show listeners how they can become agents of change and challenge unjust social norms that cause health disparities.

Further Reading

  • H. Saksono, C. Castaneda-Sceppa, J. A. Hoffman, V. Morris, M. S. El-Nasr, and A. G. Parker. 2021. StoryMap: Using social modeling and self-modeling to support physical activity among families of low-SES backgrounds. In Proceedings of the Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI ’21). 14 pages. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1145/3411764. 3445087
  • H. Saksono, V. Morris, A. G. Parker, V. Morris, and K. Z. Gajos. 2023. Evaluating similarity variables for peer matching in digital health storytelling. Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction 7, CSCW2 Article 269 (Oct. 2023), 25 pages, DOI: https://doi.org/10.1145/3610060. 1–25.

References

  • J. Bruner. 1986. Two Modes of Thought. Actual Minds, Possible Worlds. Harvard University Press, 11–43.