IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/socmed/v350y2024ics0277953624003551.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Superior medical resources or geographic proximity? The joint effects of regional medical resource disparity, geographic distance, and cultural differences on online medical consultation

Author

Listed:
  • Liu, Xiaoxiao
  • Ben Liu, Qianqian

Abstract

Online medical consultation platforms enable patients to seek health advice from physicians across geographic regions. In this study, we analyze patterns of online consultation between patients and physicians. We examine the joint effects of regional medical resource disparity, geographic distance, and cultural differences between patients and physicians on patients' decisions about which physicians they consult online. Using a unique dataset of city-to-city tuples based on 813,684 online consultation records and combining it with region-level data from multiple external sources, we find that while regional medical resource disparity drives patients from medically disadvantaged regions to seek online consultations with physicians from medically advantaged regions, geographic distance and cultural differences tend to constrain these consultations. We also find that cultural differences can amplify the impact of regional medical resource disparity, whereas geographic distance may lessen this effect. Further, we discover that the constraining effect of geographic distance is partly due to the online-to-offline nature of online medical consultations. Moreover, additional analyses suggest that physicians' online reputation and information about physicians’ participation on the platform can help alleviate the negative effects of geographic distance and cultural differences. These findings hold significant implications for the allocation of medical resources and the formulation of healthcare policies.

Suggested Citation

  • Liu, Xiaoxiao & Ben Liu, Qianqian, 2024. "Superior medical resources or geographic proximity? The joint effects of regional medical resource disparity, geographic distance, and cultural differences on online medical consultation," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 350(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:350:y:2024:i:c:s0277953624003551
    DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2024.116911
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277953624003551
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.socscimed.2024.116911?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Pereira, Rafael H.M. & Braga, Carlos Kauê Vieira & Servo, Luciana Mendes & Serra, Bernardo & Amaral, Pedro & Gouveia, Nelson & Paez, Antonio, 2021. "Geographic access to COVID-19 healthcare in Brazil using a balanced float catchment area approach," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 273(C).
    2. Ong, L. M. L. & de Haes, J. C. J. M. & Hoos, A. M. & Lammes, F. B., 1995. "Doctor-patient communication: A review of the literature," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 40(7), pages 903-918, April.
    3. Russell Hillberry & David Hummels, 2003. "Intranational Home Bias: Some Explanations," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 85(4), pages 1089-1092, November.
    4. Ali Hortaçsu & F. Asís Martínez-Jerez & Jason Douglas, 2009. "The Geography of Trade in Online Transactions: Evidence from eBay and MercadoLibre," American Economic Journal: Microeconomics, American Economic Association, vol. 1(1), pages 53-74, February.
    5. Nemet, Gregory F. & Bailey, Adrian J., 2000. "Distance and health care utilization among the rural elderly," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 50(9), pages 1197-1208, May.
    6. Zhijun Yan & Lini Kuang & Liangfei Qiu, 2022. "Prosocial behaviors and economic performance: Evidence from an online mental healthcare platform," Production and Operations Management, Production and Operations Management Society, vol. 31(10), pages 3859-3876, October.
    7. Yi-Jen (Ian) Ho & Sanjeev Dewan & Yi-Chun (Chad) Ho, 2020. "Distance and Local Competition in Mobile Geofencing," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 31(4), pages 1421-1442, December.
    8. Holger C. Wolf, 2000. "Intranational Home Bias In Trade," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 82(4), pages 555-563, November.
    9. Lu (Lucy) Yan, 2018. "Good Intentions, Bad Outcomes: The Effects of Mismatches between Social Support and Health Outcomes in an Online Weight Loss Community," Production and Operations Management, Production and Operations Management Society, vol. 27(1), pages 9-27, January.
    10. Yili Hong & Paul A. Pavlou, 2017. "On Buyer Selection of Service Providers in Online Outsourcing Platforms for IT Services," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 28(3), pages 547-562, September.
    11. Aishwarya Deep Shukla & Guodong (Gordon) Gao & Ritu Agarwal, 2021. "How Digital Word-of-Mouth Affects Consumer Decision Making: Evidence from Doctor Appointment Booking," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 67(3), pages 1546-1568, March.
    12. Wenjuan Fan & Qiqi Zhou & Liangfei Qiu & Subodha Kumar, 2023. "Should Doctors Open Online Consultation Services? An Empirical Investigation of Their Impact on Offline Appointments," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 34(2), pages 629-651, June.
    13. Mohan, Gretta & Nolan, Anne & Lyons, Seán, 2019. "An investigation of the effect of accessibility to General Practitioner services on healthcare utilisation among older people," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 220(C), pages 254-263.
    14. Dovidio, John F. & Penner, Louis A. & Albrecht, Terrance L. & Norton, Wynne E. & Gaertner, Samuel L. & Shelton, J. Nicole, 2008. "Disparities and distrust: The implications of psychological processes for understanding racial disparities in health and health care," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 67(3), pages 478-486, August.
    15. Huguet, Marius, 2020. "Centralization of care in high volume hospitals and inequalities in access to care," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 260(C).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Cletus C. Coughlin & Dennis Novy, 2013. "Is the International Border Effect Larger than the Domestic Border Effect? Evidence from US Trade," CESifo Economic Studies, CESifo Group, vol. 59(2), pages 249-276, June.
    2. Chen, Qiulin & Xu, Duo & Fu, Hongqiao & Yip, Winnie, 2022. "Distance effects and home bias in patient choice on the Internet: Evidence from an online healthcare platform in China," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 72(C).
    3. Mingfeng Lin & Siva Viswanathan, 2016. "Home Bias in Online Investments: An Empirical Study of an Online Crowdfunding Market," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 62(5), pages 1393-1414, May.
    4. Liang Chen & Garrett Johnson & Yao Luo, 2015. "Great and Small Walls of China: Distance & Chinese E-Commerce," Working Papers 15-14, NET Institute.
    5. Qili Wang & Liangfei Qiu & Wei Xu, 2024. "Informal Payments and Doctor Engagement in an Online Health Community: An Empirical Investigation Using Generalized Synthetic Control," Information Systems Research, INFORMS, vol. 35(2), pages 706-726, June.
    6. Benedikt Herz & Xosé-Luís Varela-Irimia, 2020. "Border effects in European public procurement [Information costs and home bias: an analysis of US holdings of foreign equities]," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 20(6), pages 1359-1405.
    7. Thi Mai Phuong, Chu & Tu, Thuy Anh, 2014. "On the border effect in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP)," Papers 910, World Trade Institute.
    8. Pradeep K. Chintagunta & Junhong Chu, 2021. "Geography as branding: Descriptive evidence from Taobao," Quantitative Marketing and Economics (QME), Springer, vol. 19(1), pages 53-92, March.
    9. Hicham Ganga & Javier Alonso & Vincenzo Spiezia & Jan Tscheke, 2018. "Patterns of domestic and cross-border e-commerce in Spain: A gravitational model approach," Working Papers 18/18, BBVA Bank, Economic Research Department.
    10. Agnosteva, Delina E. & Anderson, James E. & Yotov, Yoto V., 2019. "Intra-national trade costs: Assaying regional frictions," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 32-50.
    11. Ali Hortaçsu & F. Asís Martínez-Jerez & Jason Douglas, 2009. "The Geography of Trade in Online Transactions: Evidence from eBay and MercadoLibre," American Economic Journal: Microeconomics, American Economic Association, vol. 1(1), pages 53-74, February.
    12. James E. Anderson & Eric van Wincoop, 2004. "Trade Costs," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 42(3), pages 691-751, September.
    13. Nicholas Crafts & Alexander Klein, 2015. "Geography and intra-national home bias: U.S. domestic trade in 1949 and 2007," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 15(3), pages 477-497.
    14. Fernando Borraz & Alberto Cavallo & Roberto Rigobon & Leandro Zipitria, 2016. "Distance and Political Boundaries: Estimating Border Effects under Inequality Constraints," International Journal of Finance & Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 21(1), pages 3-35, January.
    15. Peiyu Zhou & Yuguang Xie & Changyong Liang & Junhong Zhu & Shuping Zhao, 2024. "The effect of prosocial behavior and its intensity on doctors’ performance in an online health community," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 11(1), pages 1-11, December.
    16. Chintrakarn, Pandej & Millimet, Daniel L., 2006. "The environmental consequences of trade: Evidence from subnational trade flows," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 52(1), pages 430-453, July.
    17. Chahrour, Ryan & Stevens, Luminita, 2020. "Price dispersion and the border effect," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 116(C), pages 135-146.
    18. Cletus C. Coughlin & Dennis Novy, 2021. "Estimating Border Effects: The Impact Of Spatial Aggregation," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 62(4), pages 1453-1487, November.
    19. Jorge Díaz-Lanchas & José Luis Zofío & Carlos Llano, 2022. "A trade hierarchy of cities based on transport cost thresholds," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 56(8), pages 1359-1376, August.
    20. S. Brock Blomberg & Rozlyn C. Engel, 2012. "Lines in the Sand: Price Dispersion across Iraq's Intranational Borders before, during, and after the Surge," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 55(3), pages 503-538.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:350:y:2024:i:c:s0277953624003551. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/315/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.