title: Why do patients derogate physicians who use a computer-based diagnostic support system?
abstract: To better understand 1) why patients have a negative perception of the use of computerized clinical decision support systems (CDSSs) and 2) what contributes to the documented heterogeneity in the evaluations of physicians who use a CDSS.
  
  
  
  Three vignette-based studies examined whether negative perceptions stemmed directly from the use of a computerized decision aid or the need to seek external advice more broadly (experiment 1) and investigated the contributing role of 2 individual difference measures, attitudes toward statistics (ATS; experiment 2) and the Multidimensional Health Locus of Control Scale (MHLC; experiment 3), to these findings.
  
  
  
  A physician described as making an unaided diagnosis was rated significantly more positively on a number of attributes than a physician using a computerized decision aid but not a physician who sought the advice of an expert colleague (experiment 1). ATS were unrelated to perceptions of decision aid use (experiment 2); however, greater internal locus of control was associated with more positive feelings about unaided care and more negative feelings about care when a decision aid was used (experiment 3).
  
  
  
  Negative perceptions of computerized decision aid use may not be a product of the need to seek external advice more generally but may instead be specific to the use of a nonhuman tool and may be associated with individual differences in locus of control. Together, these 3 studies may be used to guide education efforts for patients.
authors: Department of Health Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri(VAS)|Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri  (VAS, ECM)
authors: Victoria A
authors: VA
authors: Shaffer
authors: Office of Patient Safety, Baylor Healthcare System, Dallas, Texas (CAP)
authors: C Adam
authors: CA
authors: Probst
authors: Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri  (VAS, ECM)
authors: Edgar C
authors: EC
authors: Merkle
authors: Department of Psychology, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio (HRA)
authors: Hal R
authors: HR
authors: Arkes
authors: College of Medicine, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts (MAM)
authors: Mitchell A
authors: MA
authors: Medow
mesh_terms: D003936:Diagnosis, Computer-Assisted; D006801:Humans; D015146:Midwestern United States; D010361:Patients / Q000523:psychology*; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians'