Are religiously affiliated hospitals more than just nonprofits? A study on stereotypical patient perceptions and preferences.
Recent research on patients' perceptions of different hospitals predominantly concentrates on whether hospitals are nonprofit or for-profit. Nonprofit hospitals can be subdivided into hospitals that are affiliated with a religious denomination and those that are not. Referring to the stereotypic content model, this study analyzes patients' perceptions of religious hospitals based on the factors of warmth, competence, trustworthiness and Christianity. Using a survey of German citizens (N = 300) with a one-factorial between-subject design (for-profit vs. nonprofit vs. religious nonprofit), we found that religious affiliation increases the perceptions of hospitals' trustworthiness and attractiveness. The study indicated that patients' perceptions of nonprofit hospitals with a religious affiliation differ from patients' beliefs about nonprofit hospitals without a religious affiliation, implying that research into ownership-related differences must account for hospital subtypes. Furthermore, religious hospitals that communicate their ownership status may have competitive advantages over those with a different ownership status.
Department of Business Administration II, Marketing and Health Care Management, University of Freiburg, Platz der Alten Synagoge, 79085, Freiburg, Germany, annkathrin.seemann@icloud.com.
Ann-Kathrin
AK
Seemann
Florian
F
Drevs
Christoph
C
Gebele
Dieter K
DK
Tscheulin
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany; D016519:Hospitals, Religious / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D057240:Patient Preference / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012068:Religion and Medicine; D013240:Stereotyping; D055815:Young Adult