Bmc Med Res Methodol
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Bmc Med Res Methodol · Jan 2018
Randomized Controlled TrialStudying medical communication with video vignettes: a randomized study on how variations in video-vignette introduction format and camera focus influence analogue patients' engagement.
Video vignettes are used to test the effects of physicians' communication on patient outcomes. Methodological choices in video-vignette development may have far-stretching consequences for participants' engagement with the video, and thus the ecological validity of this design. To supplement the scant evidence in this field, this study tested how variations in video-vignette introduction format and camera focus influence participants' engagement with a video vignette showing a bad news consultation. ⋯ Our findings imply that using an audiovisual introduction combined with alternating camera focus depicting patient's emotions results in the highest levels of emotional engagement in analogue patients. This evidence can inform methodological decisions during the development of video vignettes, and thereby enhance the ecological validity of future video-vignettes studies.