The Study Of Physician Empathy Theory—Structure,Scale Development And Measurement

Background: In view of the positive effect on patients exerted by the physician empathy,the domestic and foreign scholars have carried out extensive research on empathy.They have many achievements in the physician empathy measurement,the physician empathy training etc.However,the domestic study on the physician empathy,most of which are borrowed from foreign research results to consider its applicability in China,and exploration along with innovation is not enough as well,can be counted on one’s fingers.Meanwhile,because of the complexity of empathy itself,these studies on its concept and structure are complicated,so there is still no unified understanding in the academic world.Especially when the research on “empathy” is considered in “physician-patient”,a kind of special interpersonal relationship,no Chinese scholar has explored the concept and structure of the physician empathy.Goal: To define the physician empathy as a kind of competence.To deeply analyze and explore its connotation and extension.To interpret the structure,characteristics and evaluation methods,and to analyze the difference of empathy competence in different groups of physicians.To make the foundation for the further study of how the physician empathy competence exert effect in the prognosis of patients and “physician-patient” relationship.To provide a basis for the further study of how to train and improve the physician empathy competence.Methods: Using concept analysis theory,the author analyzes related concepts of “empathy”.Then she makes the definition of the physician empathy competence and the hypothesis of its structure dimension.Through semi-structured interviews,questionnaire survey,structural equation modeling and test method,the structure dimension,the model fitting and the questionnaire letter validity of the physician empathy competence are confirmed by the author.Results: After data analysis and verification,the physician empathy competence consists of four dimensions,namely the empathic understanding,the empathic emotion,the empathic attitude and the empathic behavior.The various dimensions are positively correlated with “physician empathy competence” and correlated with each other.The effect of physician genders on “physician empathy competence” has no difference.Conclusion: This study explores and confirms the structure dimensions of “physician empathy competence”,and creates the self rating questionnaire of “physician empathy competence”.The structure created by this study includes the empathic attitude and the empathic behavior,the two dimensions which are not in the previous studies,in addition to the understanding and emotion dimension.It illustrates that in “physician-patient” relationship,physician empathy competence is different from the empathy competence of ordinary adults.And this kind of empathy competence is affected by the physician empathic attitude and behavior.In this study,the question of social desirability is ignored,and it may exert certain influence on the results.In the next research,the author will give full consideration to those exogenous factors which are related to the evaluation of “physician empathy competence”.Although this study is not comprehensive,it provides a solid foundation for further research on “physician empathy competence”.In this sense,this study is innovative and applied.