Using Consumer Perceptions and a Contingency Approach to Improve Health Care Delivery

Abstract

This study investigates whether insights provided by personal influence research might enhance physician effectiveness in patient encounters. Specifically, this article considers how the use of social power behaviors, which are particularly relevant to the patient-physician relationship, might be used in a contingent fashion to achieve maximum effectiveness, as judged by patients. We hypothesize that the effectiveness of expert and legitimate, referent, and coercive social power behaviors are contingent upon two aspects of the medical situation: (1) the riskiness of the situation, and (2) whether the patient and physician are meeting for the first time or have an ongoing relationship. We found that the effectiveness of expert and legitimate social power behaviors, in terms of patient satisfaction, compliance, and action, was contingent on the aspects of the situation that were manipulated. On the other hand, high-referent and low-coercive power were preferred by patients regardless of the situation. The specific implications of these findings are discussed, with special attention given to the difficulty of operationalizing situation variables.