Publication · Health Economics · 2026
Guidance or Misdirection? Unpacking the Role of Feedback in Health Preference Assessments
Mesfin G. Genie; Shelby D. Reed; Semra Ozdemir (2026). Guidance or Misdirection? Unpacking the Role of Feedback in Health Preference Assessments. Health Economics. doi:10.1002/hec.70093
In plain language
In stated-preference studies, researchers sometimes give respondents feedback about their earlier answers. This paper asks whether that feedback improves the quality of the data or quietly changes the preferences being measured.
Research question
Does giving respondents feedback during a health-preference task help them answer better, or steer them towards a particular pattern of answers?
Approach
A health-preference assessment examining the role of feedback in how respondents complete preference tasks.
Contribution
It clarifies when feedback supports genuine preferences and when it risks manufacturing consistency, which matters for how preference studies are designed and reported.
Why it matters
It informs good practice in preference elicitation, including whether and how to use feedback and how to report it.
Read the paper
The full methods, results, and limitations are reported in the published article. Please read and cite the original.