8.1.1 Flashcards
What is non-verbal communication in medical consultations?
Interpersonal skills displayed by the patient and practitioner, which can be more powerful than verbal communication.
Argyle (1975) suggested that non-verbal communication is four times more powerful than verbal, but it should match verbal communication.
What happens if a practitioner’s facial expression contradicts their verbal communication?
Trust is lost if a practitioner reassures a patient verbally but appears anxious.
Example: Telling a patient there is nothing to worry about while having an anxious expression.
What is the first type of non-verbal communication mentioned?
Facial expression
Patients look for clues about their diagnosis in the practitioner’s facial expressions.
What does paralanguage include?
Non-verbal parts of speech such as ‘ums and ers’, volume, speed, and pitch.
Voice tone can indicate to patients that the practitioner is uninterested.
How can personal space affect patient comfort?
Invasion of personal space can make patients feel uncomfortable.
Patients reporting greater invasion of personal space were often lonelier.
What should practitioners be cautious about when using gestures?
Gestures must be culturally appropriate, as what is acceptable in one culture may be rude in another.
They can aid understanding but require caution.
How can a practitioner’s appearance influence patient confidence?
The practitioner’s physical appearance, including clothes and hair, can affect a patient’s confidence in them.
What was the aim of the research conducted by McKinstry and Wang (1991)?
To investigate whether doctors’ clothing influenced patients’ respect for them.
The study involved 475 patients and 30 doctors.
What methodology was used in McKinstry and Wang’s study?
Questionnaires with photos of doctors in various clothing styles were administered to patients.
Included clothing styles like white coat, suit, tweed jacket, cardigan, or jeans.
What relationship was found between patient age and doctor choice?
Older patients preferred doctors in conservative clothing styles like suits and white coats.
Some patients chose doctors based on the clothing style of their own doctor.
What percentage of participants found clothing style important?
64 percent found it very important or quite important.
36 percent did not find clothing style important.
What is the conclusion drawn from McKinstry and Wang’s research?
Patients prefer conservatively dressed doctors.
Doctors may dress in a certain way to gain patients’ approval.
What does verbal communication focus on in medical consultations?
How the practitioner questions the patient and conveys information about diagnosis and treatment.
What is the primacy effect?
Information from the beginning of the consultation is remembered better than later information.
Ley (1988) researched this phenomenon.
How much information do patients typically remember from consultations?
Patients often remember as little as 20 percent of information.
Richard et al. (2016) reported that patients forget between 40 and 80 percent of information.
What has recently received attention in practitioner communication?
The use of medical terminology and its impact on patient understanding.
What was the aim of McKinlay’s 1975 research?
To investigate Scottish working class families’ understanding of medical terminology
Focused on comprehension of medical terms by working-class women in obstetrics and gynaecology settings.
How many participants were involved in McKinlay’s study?
87 unskilled working-class women
Participants attended obstetrics and gynaecology appointments.
How were participants categorized in McKinlay’s research?
Utilisers and underutilisers
This categorization was based on their engagement with healthcare services.
What methodology was used in McKinlay’s study?
Participants were presented with a 13-word list used by practitioners
Words were spoken aloud, heard in a sentence, and participants were asked for their meanings.
What conclusion did McKinlay draw about physicians and working-class participants?
Physicians consistently underestimated the comprehension of working-class participants
Many used complex terms assuming low understanding.
What was a key validity concern raised about McKinstry and Wang’s study?
They used photographs of unknown doctors rather than participants’ own doctors
This may not reflect real-life understanding.
What issue did McKinlay’s research address regarding generalisability?
McKinstry and Wang’s sample may not be representative of other areas
McKinlay’s sample was limited to working-class women.
How can McKinlay’s results be applied in healthcare settings?
To address miscommunication and improve understanding between practitioners and patients
Results can inform training and communication strategies.
What type of data did McKinlay collect regarding underutilisers?
Quantitative data showed poorer technical vocabulary
Qualitative interview data is needed for deeper insights.
What type of data did McKinstry and Wang include in their study?
Quantitative data reliably obtained from closed questions
This data was used to support findings.
What was a validity concern regarding the gender representation in McKinstry and Wang’s study?
They used more photos of males than females
No picture of a female doctor in a suit was included.
What does McKinlay’s research suggest about communication barriers?
Moves responsibility from the patient to the practitioner
Strategies can be developed to improve healthcare communication.
What approach did McKinlay’s research primarily utilize?
Nomothetic approach
Focused on groups for generalization of findings.
What is a potential benefit of an idiographic approach in healthcare research?
It would discover individual needs
Important for tailoring communication styles based on patient issues.
