Television Exposure and the Public's Perceptions of Physicians

Patients' Perceptions of Physicians: A Pilot Study of the Influence of Prime-Time Fictional Medical Shows

“…All other aspects showed positive exposure to prime-time medical shows and perceptions of personal physician propriety, power, communication, sociability, composure, extroversion, and competence. In comparing these results to those in the previous study conducted by Chory-Assad and Tamborini (2003), there seems to be a reversal to a more positive perception of physicians linked to exposure to prime-time medical shows. The second research question asked if prime-time fictional medical shows effect patient-physician interactions.…”

“…The shows included were Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice, ER, House, and Scrubs. The shows the previous study conducted by Chory-Assad and Tamborini (2003) included in their survey were Becker, Chicago Hope, Diagnosis Murder, ER, Frasier, L.A. Doctors, Melrose Place, Providence, and The Pretender. A variance does exist in regards to the type and quality of programming.…”

The Effects of Viewing Grey's Anatomy on Perceptions of Doctors and Patient Satisfaction

“…In fact, in several of the aforementioned studies, support for the cultivation hypothesis was more robust for genre-specific compared to total television viewing (Chory-Assad & Tamborini, 2003;Segrin & Nabi, 2002;Wilson et al, 2005). Specifically, Chory-Assad and Tamborini found that exposure to prime-time medical dramas among others predicted physician perceptions, but total television viewing did not.…”

“…Extant research successfully traced historic portrayals of television doctors (Turow, 1989;Turow & Coe, 1985), while others performed systematic content analyses to examine doctor portrayals on television (Chory-Assad & Tamborini, 2001;Pfau et al, 1995); however, less is known about the influence of television in shaping patient perceptions of doctors (Chory-Assad & Tamborini, 2003;Pfau et al;Volgy & Schwarz, 1980), particularly within the context of a single medical drama.…”

“…Specifically, heavy viewers are hypothesized to provide answers consistent with television reality when asked about real-world reality (Gerbner & Gross, 1976). Although this hypothesis rings true for total television viewing (see Gerbner et al, 2002) and genre-specific viewing (Chory-Assad & Tamborini, 2003;Romer et al, 2003;Segrin & Nabi, 2002;Wilson et al, 2003), conceivably cultivation theory is an appropriate framework for a single show spanning 32 episodes. Therefore, portrayals presented across 32 Grey's Anatomy episodes will likely impact viewers' perceptions of real-world doctors.…”