Do gender-dyads have different communication patterns? A comparative study in Western-European general practices

Area of Science:

• Medical Communication
• Cross-Cultural Psychology
• General Practice

Background:

• Doctor-patient communication quality is crucial for healthcare.
• Gender, cultural norms, and values significantly influence communication dynamics.
• Understanding cross-cultural variations in doctor-patient interactions is essential.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate differences in doctor-patient communication patterns across Western-European countries based on gender-dyads.
• To determine if these differences persist after controlling for patient, general practitioner (GP), and consultation characteristics.

Main Methods:

• Video-taped general practice consultations from 190 GPs and 2812 patients across six Western-European countries were analyzed.
• Cluster analysis was employed to identify distinct communication patterns.
• Communication patterns were categorized into biomedical, biopsychosocial, and psychosocial types.

Main Results:

• Three distinct communication patterns were identified: biomedical, biopsychosocial, and psychosocial.
• Communication patterns of female/female dyads differed significantly from other gender-dyads across countries.
• Cross-country variations in communication patterns were primarily attributed to male doctors' consultation styles, irrespective of patient gender.

Conclusions:

• Gender-dyads, particularly female/female dyads, exhibit unique communication patterns in general practice.
• Cross-country differences in doctor-patient communication are influenced by male doctors' interaction styles.
• Acknowledging gender-dyad and country-specific variations is vital for accurate cross-cultural communication research.