Self-presentation in medicine: How language patterns reflect physician impression management goals and affect perceptions

Abstract

This paper evaluated how physicians' communication patterns reflect their self-presentation goals and link to patient perceptions. Specifically, in a large field study (N = 54,420 profiles from HealthGrades.com), physician self-descriptions were analyzed linguistically through automated means, with evidence suggesting those who were more self-focused and confident tended to have higher patient ratings online than those who were less self-focused and confident. Physicians who discussed their expertise and compassion for patients were also rated more favorably. A within-subjects experiment in Study 2 (N = 500) also demonstrated that linguistic self-presentation patterns can affect patient perceptions. Participants who read physician profiles with high rates of self-references and verbal confidence rated doctors as warmer and more competent than those who read physician profiles with low rates of self-references and certainty. Together, words are indicators of physicians’ self-presentation strategies and can change patient evaluations. Theoretical contributions for self-presentation and psychology of language research are discussed.