Utilization Of Advice Research Articles

The multifaceted nature of trust in the uptake of advice: policy advice utilization in ministerial cabinets

ABSTRACT What makes policy advice circulate more easily towards the apex of governments and shape the opinions of its users along the way? This article investigates the utilization of policy advice in ministerial cabinets, by focusing on the individuals appointed to work as closest aides of ministers: ministerial advisers. While we know quite a lot about the operation of policy advisory systems at the macro and meso levels, the micro-dispositions affecting the circulation and utilization of policy advice are under-researched topics. Building on recent research waves on policy advice and policy advisory systems, we expect that trust between ministerial advisers and their advice-suppliers is a pivotal driver of policy advice utilization. Based on an original survey conducted in the ministerial cabinets of French-speaking Belgium, this article provides evidence that ministerial advisers’ overall propensity to trust advice-suppliers tends to boost policy advice utilization. Yet, we show that the characteristics of advice suppliers also come into play in advisory relationships and that ministerial advisers have various needs in that regard, depending on them being high or low trust individuals. Our findings speak to the importance of paying attention to relational dynamics and informality in policy advising.

Utilization of Advice from Human-in-The-Loop Systems

Utilization of Advice from Human-in-The-Loop Systems

Machine learning advice in managerial decision-making: The overlooked role of decision makers’ advice utilization

Machine learning (ML) analyses offer great potential to craft profound advice for augmenting managerial decision-making. Yet, even the most promising ML advice cannot improve decision-making if it is not utilized by decision makers. We therefore investigate how ML analyses influence decision makers’ utilization of advice and resulting decision-making performance. By analyzing data from 239 ML-supported decisions in real-world organizational scenarios, we demonstrate that decision makers’ utilization of ML advice depends on the information quality and transparency of ML advice as well as decision makers’ trust in data scientists’ competence. Furthermore, we find that decision makers’ utilization of ML advice can lead to improved decision-making performance, which is, however, moderated by the decision makers’ management level. The study’s results can help organizations leverage ML advice to improve decision-making and promote the mutual consideration of technical and social aspects behind ML advice in research and practice as a basic requirement.

Report on COVID-19 infection prevention and control training sessions for care homes provided by Kawaguchi city and comparison with those provided by the local governments in Japan

Objectives We compared COVID-19 prevention and control information provided to care homes (CHs) by the Kawaguchi City public health center (PHC), which utilizes our precedent advice on nfection, with the information from several local governments (LGs) in Japan. This study aimed to highlight the role of LG-associated doctors in providing information to CHs, utilizing their precedent advice on infection control in CHs and medical facilities. This study analyzed the sector and type of information the LGs should provide to CHs to prevent and control COVID-19.Methods We compared training sessions on COVID-19 prevention and control information provided to CHs by the Kawaguchi City PHC with training sessions offered by several other LGs in Japan that are available on their websites.Results The Kawaguchi City PHC has been providing COVID-19 information to CHs when needed, including prevention and control information, through their doctors, utilizing our precedent advice on infection control, management of health conditions of staff and residents, and early detection of COVID-19. In contrast, 68 LGs announced that they have provided training sessions to CHs for the prevention and control of COVID-19 through their official homepages from March to September 2022. These training sessions involved information dissemination by infection control specialist nurses (42.6%), clinic or hospital doctors (32.4%), infection control specialist doctors (11.8%), and staff from LG headquarters, PHC, or LG-associated doctors (51.5%). Among the 68 LGs, 41 provided information that included hand hygiene (95.1%), personal protective equipment (92.7%), proper ventilation (51.2%), and management of staff (90.2%) and resident (58.5%) health conditions. Furthermore, Kawaguchi City PHC and several LGs provided information for the early detection of COVID-19.Conclusion We suggest that LGs provide COVID-19 training sessions conducted by LG doctors that include management of staff and resident health conditions, provision of early detection information, and utilization of precedent advice on infection in CHs and medical facilities.

The Impact of the Affordable Care Act on Disparities in Utilization of Cardiovascular Preventive Services by Socioeconomic Status.

Disparities in cardiovascular outcomes are persistent in our society. The objective was to track the trends before and after the passage of the Affordable Care Act in socioeconomic status (SES) disparities in utilization of cardiovascular disease (CVD) preventive services among nonelderly adults aged 18-64 years. This study used the National Health Interview Survey (2011-2017) to compare utilization of blood pressure, cholesterol, glycemic screening, and diet and smoking cessation advice over time between groups stratified by SES and race using difference-in-difference analysis. This study also measured the differences over time in specific vulnerable population subgroups (Hispanic, low-income and uninsured vs. White, middle-high-income, and insured). The study population included 176,961 surveyed individuals (mean age 40 [±13] years; 51% female; 67.7% non-Hispanic White) between 2011 and 2017, translating to 194.8 million nonelderly US adults per year. Most individuals were from high-income SES (40.0%), followed by middle-income (28.1%), low-income (13.6%), and lowest income SES (18.3%). The proportion of CVD preventive services increased over all SES categories through the study period. The biggest relative changes were seen among low-income individuals. The difference in blood pressure checks, cholesterol checks, and smoking cessation advise between high- and lowest income groups showed a statistically significant decrease at 5.2%, 4.8%, and 11.2%, respectively, between 2011 and 2017. The findings demonstrate a trend in reduction of CVD preventive care disparities between SES groups. However, a gap still exists, and this study highlights the need for continuous improvement to eliminate SES disparities.

Nutritional service needs of pregnant and lactating adolescent girls in Trans-Mara East Sub-County, Narok County: focus on access and utilization of nutritional advice and services

BackgroundAn understanding of the association between adolescent nutrition, adolescent pregnancy and their quest for healthcare services may elucidate a basis for intervention and formulation of programs that enhance post-partum and increase the lifespan of the newborn, improve the quality of life and bridge morbidity, mortality and healthcare-associated cost. However, the nutritional needs of pregnant and lactating adolescent girls aged below 10 years resident in Trans Mara East Sub-County, Kenya remained unestablished. The objective of this study was to assess the nutritional needs of pregnant and lactating adolescent girls (under 19) when accessing and utilizing nutritional advice and services in Trans-Mara East Sub-County, Narok County.MethodsThe study adopted a cross-sectional approach that employed mixed methods with both quantitative and qualitative research approaches. Cochran formula was applied to arrive at a minimum of 291 households. Probability proportionate to size sampling techniques using cluster and simple random methods were used to practically access adolescents who are pregnant or lactating. Data was collected using questionnaires, in-depth interview and Focus Group Discussion. Quantitative data was analyzed descriptively using frequencies and inferentially using odds ratio and z-test. Framework analysis was employed to analyze qualitative data. p ≤ 0.05 was considered statistically significant.ResultsThe study revealed that access of pieces of nutritional-related advice represented by 67.8% was significantly higher than expected frequency of 50%. Nutrition supplementation, food fortification or blending and complementary feeding were significantly below the expectant frequency (p < 0.01) of 50%. Nutrition service areas such as provision and collection of vitamin A and IFAS were significantly lower than expected frequency (p < 0.01).ConclusionsThe most widely utilized were nutrition services that falls within the preventive-focused services followed by curative-focused services. Nutritionist and nurse more likely to increase overall utilization of nutrition services.

Utilization of Advice from Face-to-Face and Internet-Mediated Advisors

Advice is increasingly sought and shared online, but advisory professionals debate the utility of such methods. Variations in recipients' perceptions of elements of traditional face-to-face (FTF) advice and Internet-mediated (IM) advice may influence its utilization. The present research investigated whether communication format (FTF vs. IM) and an advisor's level of expertise influence perceptions and utilization of advice. Participants played 30 rounds of a prisoner's dilemma game after receiving advice about the best strategy. There was a significant tendency for advice to be followed, but the advice format and advisor expertise had no significant influence on advice utilization and only minor influences on self-reported perceptions of the advice and the advisor. This has worrying implications, and could indicate a lack of critical awareness of advisors' expertise when deciding whether to follow advice or not. Implications for the professional advice field and further research possibilities are discussed.

The Effect of Intuitive Advice Justification on Advice Taking

ABSTRACTHow do you respond when receiving advice from somebody with the argumentation “my gut tells me so” or “this is what my intuition says”? Most likely, you would find this justification insufficient and disregard the advice. Are there also situations where people do appreciate such intuitive advice and change their opinion accordingly? A growing number of authors write about the power of intuition in solving problems, showing that intuitively made decisions can be of higher quality than decisions based on analytical reasoning. We want to know if decision makers, when receiving advice based on an intuitive cognitive process, also recognize the value of such advice. Is advice justified by intuition necessarily followed to a lesser extent than an advice justified by analysis? Furthermore, what are the important factors influencing the effect of intuitive justification on advice taking? Participants across three studies show that utilization of intuitive advice varies depending on advisor seniority and type of task for which the advice is given. Summarizing, the results suggest that decision makers a priori doubt the value of intuitive advice and only assess it as accurate if other cues in the advice setting corroborate this. Intuitively justified advice is utilized more if it comes from a senior advisor. In decision tasks with experiential products, intuitively justified advice can even have more impact than analytically justified advice. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.

Using advice from multiple sources to revise and improve judgments

How might people revise their opinions on the basis of multiple pieces of advice? What sort of gains could be obtained from rules for using advice? In the present studies judges first provided their initial estimates for a series of questions; next they were presented with several (2, 4, or 8) opinions from an ecological pool of advisory estimates (Experiment 1), or with artificial advice (Experiment 2); finally they provided their revised estimates. Descriptive analyses of their revision process revealed that they egocentrically trimmed the opinion sets such that opinions distant from their own were greatly discounted. Normative analyses suggest that they gained substantially from the use of advice, though not optimally, due to their self-centered utilization of the advice. The results are discussed in connection with theories of belief revision and attitude change, with an emphasis on decision-makers’ strategies for coping with conflicting opinions and the appropriateness of discounting distant or dissenting opinions. Prescriptive implications for the utilization of advice are also considered.

Factors affecting the acceptance of expert advice

This paper expands research on the judge advisor system (JAS) by examining advice utilization and trust. Experiment 1 examined five factors that could increase utilization of expert advice: judge's trust in the advisor, advisor confidence, advisor accuracy, judge's prior relationship with the advisor, and judge's power to set payment to the advisor. While judge's trust and advisor confidence correlated with the judge matching the advisor's advice, a stepwise regression found that of the five variables, advisor confidence was the only significant predictor of the judge matching the advisor. Experiment 2 examined trust without the role assignment to judge or advisor. While trust expressed in partner was not higher for the judge than the advisor in Experiment 1, in Experiment 2 trust in partner expressed by the low-expertise dyad member was higher than trust expressed by the high-expertise dyad member. Results from the two experiments are discussed in the context of Sniezek and Van Swol (2001).

Patterns of help-seeking behaviour for toddlers from two contrasting socio-economic groups: new evidence on a neglected topic.

This descriptive study aimed to assess patterns in help-seeking behaviour for common childhood symptoms. Clinic attenders aged 9-18 months of two child health clinics on Tyneside, UK, one with substantial economic deprivation, were studied. Outcome measures were parental reporting of common symptoms, utilization of professional advice and general practitioner records of consultations. Children in the affluent area had had fewer general practitioner consultations (mean 7.3) than those in the poorer area (mean 15.1; 95% CI for difference 4.3-11.4). They were less likely to present with an episode of diarrhoea or cold but were as likely as the poorer group to present with fever. Behaviour problems were reported less frequently (23% versus 47%), but if present, this was far more likely to result in help seeking than in the poorer group (86% versus 33%; P < 0.05). Variations in help-seeking behaviour between two economically contrasting groups were identified; this has implications for clinical understanding and service provision in primary care.