Boundedly rational patients? Part 2: Health and patient mistakes in a behavioral framework

Ada C. Stefanescu Schmidt, Ami B. Bhatt and Cass R. Sunstein ()
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Ada C. Stefanescu Schmidt: Division of Cardiology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School
Ami B. Bhatt: Outpatient Cardiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Professor at Harvard Medical School
Cass R. Sunstein: Robert Walmsley University, Professor at Harvard University

Journal of Behavioral Economics for Policy, 2017, vol. 1, issue 2, 17-23

Abstract: We present the results of a randomized-assignment experiment that shows that patients perform very poorly on the Cognitive Reflection Test and thus are overwhelmingly in a System 1 state prior to a physician visit. Assigning patients the task of completing patient-reported outcomes measures immediately prior to the visit had a small numerical, but not statistically significant, shift towards a reflective frame of mind. We describe hypotheses to explain poor performance by patients, which may be due to anxiety, a bandwidth tax, or a scarcity effect, and outline further direction for study. Understanding the behavioral sources of errors on the part of patients in their interactions with physicians and in their decision-making is necessary to implement measures improve shared decision-making, patient experience, and (perhaps above all) clinical outcomes.

Keywords: Cognitive Reflections Test; patient-reported outcomes measurement information system; System 1 and System 2; nudges (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C91 D83 I12 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2017
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