Personalization

What is personalization?

Personalization adapts information, presentation, or a service to an individual. It can use information the person supplies, such as a selected language or stated goal, as well as observed behavior. It does not always require a detailed behavioral profile.

Related research

Hawkins and colleagues (2008) distinguish personalization, feedback, and content matching within tailored health communication. Their framework describes ways of making communication more relevant; the reviewed results were not consistently positive.

Personalization example

Content matched to a stated goal

Consider a hypothetical language-learning service. During setup, a user selects “prepare for travel.” The service then shows instructions for finding travel lessons and practicing common travel conversations. Someone selecting “prepare for a language exam” sees instructions for the exam-practice tools. The stated goal is the input; the content and instructions are what change.

Reminder timing

A separate adaptation concerns timing. The user chooses weekday reminders at 7 p.m., so the service sends reminders then instead of using a single schedule for everyone. The user can change the time or turn reminders off. Neither adaptation requires the service to infer a psychological profile.

Evaluation and limits

The service could test whether these choices improve lesson completion or understanding compared with standard instructions and reminders. It should measure the intended outcome; a person opening one message does not establish a stable preference for its wording or channel.

A personalized greeting and advice matched to an individual’s circumstances are different interventions. Neither guarantees better decisions or continued use. Check relevance, accuracy, and whether the information used for adaptation remains appropriate. Also consider privacy and control: does the person understand the adaptation and have a useful way to change it?