Assessing user experience with services: measuring subjective well-being in oncology hospitals

Abstract Background Capturing subjective user experiences is crucial for service design, assessment, and management. However, using metrics for such experiences remains an underexplored topic in the literature. This study introduces a novel survey tool to measure service-related subjective well-bein...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Leandro Miletto Tonetto, Carmen Lúcia Pinto Copetti, Priscila Brust-Renck, Cíntia de Lima Amorim, Luiz Paulo Kowalski, Genival Barbosa de Carvalho
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2025-06-01
Series:BMC Health Services Research
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-025-12965-6
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850223919618850816
author Leandro Miletto Tonetto
Carmen Lúcia Pinto Copetti
Priscila Brust-Renck
Cíntia de Lima Amorim
Luiz Paulo Kowalski
Genival Barbosa de Carvalho
author_facet Leandro Miletto Tonetto
Carmen Lúcia Pinto Copetti
Priscila Brust-Renck
Cíntia de Lima Amorim
Luiz Paulo Kowalski
Genival Barbosa de Carvalho
author_sort Leandro Miletto Tonetto
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Background Capturing subjective user experiences is crucial for service design, assessment, and management. However, using metrics for such experiences remains an underexplored topic in the literature. This study introduces a novel survey tool to measure service-related subjective well-being (SWB) among oncology patients, encompassing the three dimensions of SWB: positive affect, negative affect, and life satisfaction. The hypotheses are that (H1) highly reliable service-related SWB metrics will be generated based on reliable tools from psychology, and (H2) perceived service experience will strongly predict positive affect and life satisfaction, but they will have less predictive power for negative affect. These hypotheses are supported by research suggesting that services can improve positive affect but may not fully counteract the negative affect evoked by cancer. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional survey of 288 oncology patients using convenience sampling. The online survey was divided into three segments: patient information, SWB measures, and perceived service experience. The SWB measures encompassed its three dimensions. The survey items were adapted from consolidated psychological research scales for this study. This theory-driven approach, known as the ‘construct method,’ involves generating hypotheses based on construct theory and testing them empirically. Participants completed the survey within seven days of hospital discharge. Our data analysis included reliability measures, exploratory factor analysis on the SWB items, and regression analyses to examine the predictive power of perceived service experience on SWB. Results The survey demonstrated high reliability (Cronbach’s Alpha = 0.946). Factor analysis indicated a two-factor model, explaining 78.01% of the total variance, with a separation of positive and negative items. Regression analysis revealed that perceived service experience substantially explained SWB. Positive affect and life satisfaction were well-predicted by perceived experiences with nursing, medical, and infrastructure, while negative affect was less well-predicted. H1 was confirmed by high-reliability metrics, and H2 was supported by the regression results. Conclusions The survey can identify areas for improvement, optimize services, and measure the relationships between perceived service experience and SWB, contributing to the literature on healthcare user experience and service design metrics.
format Article
id doaj-art-6d14b8a70f0141a2b49bce844a5baf90
institution OA Journals
issn 1472-6963
language English
publishDate 2025-06-01
publisher BMC
record_format Article
series BMC Health Services Research
spelling doaj-art-6d14b8a70f0141a2b49bce844a5baf902025-08-20T02:05:47ZengBMCBMC Health Services Research1472-69632025-06-0125111610.1186/s12913-025-12965-6Assessing user experience with services: measuring subjective well-being in oncology hospitalsLeandro Miletto Tonetto0Carmen Lúcia Pinto Copetti1Priscila Brust-Renck2Cíntia de Lima Amorim3Luiz Paulo Kowalski4Genival Barbosa de Carvalho5Georgia Institute of TechnologyUniversidade do Vale do Rio dos SinosUniversidade de São PauloAC Camargo Cancer CenterAC Camargo Cancer CenterAC Camargo Cancer CenterAbstract Background Capturing subjective user experiences is crucial for service design, assessment, and management. However, using metrics for such experiences remains an underexplored topic in the literature. This study introduces a novel survey tool to measure service-related subjective well-being (SWB) among oncology patients, encompassing the three dimensions of SWB: positive affect, negative affect, and life satisfaction. The hypotheses are that (H1) highly reliable service-related SWB metrics will be generated based on reliable tools from psychology, and (H2) perceived service experience will strongly predict positive affect and life satisfaction, but they will have less predictive power for negative affect. These hypotheses are supported by research suggesting that services can improve positive affect but may not fully counteract the negative affect evoked by cancer. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional survey of 288 oncology patients using convenience sampling. The online survey was divided into three segments: patient information, SWB measures, and perceived service experience. The SWB measures encompassed its three dimensions. The survey items were adapted from consolidated psychological research scales for this study. This theory-driven approach, known as the ‘construct method,’ involves generating hypotheses based on construct theory and testing them empirically. Participants completed the survey within seven days of hospital discharge. Our data analysis included reliability measures, exploratory factor analysis on the SWB items, and regression analyses to examine the predictive power of perceived service experience on SWB. Results The survey demonstrated high reliability (Cronbach’s Alpha = 0.946). Factor analysis indicated a two-factor model, explaining 78.01% of the total variance, with a separation of positive and negative items. Regression analysis revealed that perceived service experience substantially explained SWB. Positive affect and life satisfaction were well-predicted by perceived experiences with nursing, medical, and infrastructure, while negative affect was less well-predicted. H1 was confirmed by high-reliability metrics, and H2 was supported by the regression results. Conclusions The survey can identify areas for improvement, optimize services, and measure the relationships between perceived service experience and SWB, contributing to the literature on healthcare user experience and service design metrics.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-025-12965-6Service designPatient experienceSubjective well-beingOncology
spellingShingle Leandro Miletto Tonetto
Carmen Lúcia Pinto Copetti
Priscila Brust-Renck
Cíntia de Lima Amorim
Luiz Paulo Kowalski
Genival Barbosa de Carvalho
Assessing user experience with services: measuring subjective well-being in oncology hospitals
BMC Health Services Research
Service design
Patient experience
Subjective well-being
Oncology
title Assessing user experience with services: measuring subjective well-being in oncology hospitals
title_full Assessing user experience with services: measuring subjective well-being in oncology hospitals
title_fullStr Assessing user experience with services: measuring subjective well-being in oncology hospitals
title_full_unstemmed Assessing user experience with services: measuring subjective well-being in oncology hospitals
title_short Assessing user experience with services: measuring subjective well-being in oncology hospitals
title_sort assessing user experience with services measuring subjective well being in oncology hospitals
topic Service design
Patient experience
Subjective well-being
Oncology
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s12913-025-12965-6
work_keys_str_mv AT leandromilettotonetto assessinguserexperiencewithservicesmeasuringsubjectivewellbeinginoncologyhospitals
AT carmenluciapintocopetti assessinguserexperiencewithservicesmeasuringsubjectivewellbeinginoncologyhospitals
AT priscilabrustrenck assessinguserexperiencewithservicesmeasuringsubjectivewellbeinginoncologyhospitals
AT cintiadelimaamorim assessinguserexperiencewithservicesmeasuringsubjectivewellbeinginoncologyhospitals
AT luizpaulokowalski assessinguserexperiencewithservicesmeasuringsubjectivewellbeinginoncologyhospitals
AT genivalbarbosadecarvalho assessinguserexperiencewithservicesmeasuringsubjectivewellbeinginoncologyhospitals