Table 7. Linguistic preferences among the participants (n=28).

Theme	Properties	Description	Exemplar
Preference for Bangla	❖ Bangla is more appropriate for:	Participants explicitly mention Bangla (or other native languages) as a preferred language for the VHA	“But maybe there are other patients too who have this, you know, obstacles of understanding this language. So, if it is having an option of changing the language, it would be better for many non-English speaking people to communicate with.”—P1, male, 49
	⬥ Older people
	⬥ Bangladeshi community at large
	❖ Native language for self
Preference for English	❖ English is expected in American health care settings	Participants explicitly mention English as a preferred language for the VHA	“I think language is no problem. You know, the people who lives here, now they understand a little bit of English. Language is no problem, actually.”—P20, male, 40
	❖ Medical terminologies unavailable in Bangla
Preference for choice to pick language		Participants explicitly mention a preference to be able to choose which language to use to interact with the VHA	“Well, definitely should come in different languages, I know English is what I chose, they should have options of different languages and dialects, dialects as well, because I speak a different Bangla with people of different parts of Bangladesh than what I speak at home. So, dialect is the issue especially when it comes to doctors.”—P17, female, 32

VHA, virtual health assistant.