Humor and other communication preferences in physician-patient encounters

In light of recent evidence suggesting the importance of communication in the health care setting, an instrument to measure communication style preferences was developed. This reliable and content-valid paper-and-pencil measure consisted of six scenarios depicting physician-patient interactions, each followed by four potential verbal responses from the physician. The four responses, representing four communications styles--humor, hostility, reassurance, and neutrality--were ranked by respondents according to their preferences. Among both physicians and consumers, reassuring responses were the most preferred, followed by neutral, humorous, and hostile responses. The intercorrelations of the four preferences and their relationships to standardized tests of both facilitating verbal response preferences and nonverbal expressiveness are presented. Potential uses of the instrument are discussed.