title: Blacks' and whites' attitudes toward race and nativity concordance with doctors.
abstract: While research shows that race is an important factor in patient-doctor interaction, very little is known about patients' attitudes toward doctors' race or nativity. This paper examines 2 specific components of these attitudes. We found that 16% of a Cincinnati, Ohio, sample believed that same-race doctors better understand their health problems, and 22% expected to be more at ease with same-race doctors. Blacks were more likely than whites to hold this belief and expectation, with the largest racial difference among those with college degrees. Looking at nativity, nearly one-third of the respondents believed that US-born doctors better understand their health problems and expected to be more at ease with US-born doctors. Again, blacks were more likely than whites to report a more positive view of US-born doctors compared to foreign-born doctors, with the effect of race varying by education. Future research should further explicate the nature of these attitudes and assess how these attitudes affect health care interactions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Sociology, University of Cincinnati, PO Box 210378, Cincinnati, OH 45221-0378, USA. jennifer.malat@uc.edu
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Malat
authors.forename: Michelle
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: van Ryn
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Purcell
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology*; D000368:Aged; D001290:Attitude; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D005260:Female; D005550:Foreign Medical Graduates / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D009820:Ohio; D010361:Patients / Q000523:psychology*; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D044465:White People / Q000523:psychology*