UC Riverside

The following research involves the development and testing of a new system of physician-patient communication quality (Continuous Response Measurement, CRM), utilizing the instantaneous evaluation of the valence quality of communication. Raters were presented with a data-set of 204 video-recorded physician-patient interactions. The CRM system allows identification of specific physician behaviors correlating to changes in ratings of communication quality, as well as analysis of those behaviors comprising high- and low-quality communication among physicians and patients. This dissertation research develops and tests a method to enable researchers to identify specific behaviors in the physician-patient interaction that directly correlate with communication quality. Using the CRM method, raters instantaneously evaluated the valence quality of communication as they were presented with the interaction. The researcher was then able to identify salient time intervals in which raters' assessments of communication quality differed significantly from the rating average. These salient intervals were then compared to the time-intervals in which specific physician behaviors occurred. The results of the current research indicate that the occurrence of specific behaviors within the physician-patient interaction correlate with changes in ratings over time. The findings of the research contribute to changing the ways in which the physician-patient interaction is conceptualized by developing and applying a new system for researchers to identify specific behaviors as correlates of high- and low-quality communication.