Do patients want AI doctors?
In 1,183 vignette ratings, people trusted and preferred human doctors most, human+AI next, chatbot last—especially sensitive in psychiatry.
Source
Do patients prefer a human doctor, artificial intelligence, or a blend, and is this preference dependent on medical discipline? Empirical evidence and implications for medical practice
Study at a glance
- Design
- Human experiment — Online within-subjects vignette experiment (interaction partner × discipline)
- N
- N=1183 · Adults in German-speaking countries
- Population
- Online respondents imagining seeking care for unexplained symptoms
- Outcome
- Trust, distrust, privacy invasion, disclosure, adherence, and satisfaction by partner/discipline
Structured fields used in claim comparison tables when every cited study has a complete layer.
What they did
Presented 12 vignettes crossing three partners and four disciplines; measured trust-related and behavioral-intention outcomes after each.
What they found
Main effect of partner on all six outcomes; psychiatry diverged notably in the human+AI condition; trust/distrust/privacy predicted disclosure, adherence, satisfaction.
The limits
What it doesn't show
Real clinic choices under time pressure, or performance of actual medical AI systems.
Key terms
- Vignette experiment
- Hypothetical scenarios used to elicit attitudes/preferences.
- Human+AI care
- Doctor uses AI support while still interacting with the patient.
- Chatbot-only care
- Patient interacts with an AI system without a human doctor.
- Trust / distrust
- Willingness to rely on vs suspicion of the care partner.
- Privacy invasion
- Perceived intrusion when sharing sensitive health information.
- Treatment adherence
- Stated likelihood of following recommended care.
Flashcards
Research intelligence for this paper
See its role on concept claims, tensions it is part of, placement history, and related discoveries.
Quiz yourself
Preferred partner overall?
Common questions
Ranking?
Human > human+AI > chatbot.
N?
1,183.
Odd discipline?
Psychiatry.
Design?
3×4 within-subjects vignettes.
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