Do decision-making structure and sequence exist in health online social networks?

• We consider decision-making (DM) in Health Online Social Networks (HOSN).
• We verify the existence of recognized phases and their sequence.
• Our results confirm, extend, as well as challenge existing knowledge.
• We provide practical implications for the design of HOSN.

Decision-making process has been explained through several models over the years. Among these, the rational and anarchical models have emerged as important representations of decision-making dynamics. The rational model and its variants of decision making emphasize recognized phases and sequence among them, while anarchical models focus on the lack of structure and sequence in many real-world decision-making contexts. In order to observe the existence of these phases and their sequence, it is critical to choose non-trivial situations in which the underlying dynamics of decision-making process are readily visible. To this end, we consider decision-making (DM) in Health Online Social Networks (HOSN) and verify the existence of recognized phases and the sequence in which these phases are reached. We use netnography to explore the potential of HOSN as a support tool for decision-making process. Our results confirm, extend, as well as challenge existing knowledge. Results confirm that HOSN support and empower users during their decision-making process in three specific key phases that include Intelligence, Design and Choice. We extend existing knowledge by suggesting two new phases in the decision making process that is integral to HOSN conversations, namely emotional support and sharing experiences. Our results challenge purely rational and anarchical models by recognizing the interweaving of anarchical decision sequences within the structure of rational decision making phases. These results have significant practical implications for the design of HOSN that support blended decision making processes by leveraging the wisdom of crowds.