To examine how patients' preferences for decision making in the medical encounter affect the association between their participation style and the feeling of being understood by the physician.
The study group comprised 115 patients with rheumatoid arthritis who were under continuous care by 8 rheumatologists at a university-affiliated rheumatology clinic in Tokyo, Japan. A questionnaire was distributed just after each encounter, in which patients' self-reported participation in communication during the visit, preference for decision making, and the feeling of being understood were measured. The feeling of being understood was regressed on the participation style and preference for decision making after controlling for demographic and functional variables.
Patient participation in visit communication was positively associated with the feeling of being understood. This relationship was moderated by patients' preference for decision making. Patients with higher preference for decision making were more likely to feel understood when they more actively participated in visit communication, whereas this relationship was weaker among those with lower preference for decision making.
Inviting patients to participate in visit communication may not always enhance the feeling of being understood by the physician when patients have less preference for autonomous decision making in the relationship with the physician. Exploring patients' preferences in the relationship would help physicians understand what the patient expects from visit communication and tailor their practice style to meet patients' needs.