Internal Medicine · 2 h ago
Public survey suggests clinician emotion can support serious-illness conversations
A factorial vignette survey of 1,572 members of the Swiss public assessed reactions to clinicians’ emotional expression during serious-illness conversations. Brief self-disclosure and verbal expressions of sadness were associated with higher ratings of comfort, trust, compassion and professionalism; written scenarios limit conclusions about real encounters.
- Survey included 1,572 members of the Swiss public.
- Brief self-disclosure and sadness raised ratings across four outcomes.
- Tears increased comfort, trust and compassion, not professionalism ratings.
- Written hypothetical scenarios limit real-world applicability.
Researchers used a factorial vignette-based survey of 1,572 members of the Swiss public to assess how physician self-disclosure and expressions of sadness affected perceptions of serious-illness conversations. Participants rated comfort, trust, compassion and professionalism across written scenarios. The sample included respondents from three language groups; 10.8% reported a chronic illness and 23.0% said someone close to them had one.
Brief self-disclosure and verbal expressions of sadness were associated with higher ratings across all four outcomes. Sadness accompanied by tears was associated with greater comfort, trust and compassion, without a significant reduction in perceived professionalism. Responses varied by language, age, education, physician experience and the length of the prior relationship.
The findings challenge the assumption that visible emotion is inherently unprofessional, but do not establish how patients respond in real conversations. Written vignettes cannot capture tone, body language or clinical context, and the scenarios did not include uncontrolled or sustained crying. The authors caution against scripted or clinician-centered displays of emotion and call for research with patients and families who have lived experience of serious illness.
In practice
For clinicians discussing serious illness, the survey suggests that brief self-disclosure or verbal acknowledgment of sadness may be perceived positively by members of the public, and that tears in written scenarios did not lower perceived professionalism. These findings do not show that such expressions improve patient outcomes or are appropriate in every encounter: respondents rated hypothetical written vignettes rather than real conversations, and reactions varied across groups and contexts. Emotional expression should not be treated as a scripted technique or shift attention to the clinician.
AI-generated clinical interpretation · Not editor-reviewed
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Journal of General Internal Medicine: Clinician Emotion in Serious Illness Conversations ↗This is an automated AI-condensed summary that has not yet been reviewed by an editor. Always consult the full item at the original source.