Does the Patient Really Act Like a Supermarket Shopper? a Semiotic Typology of Patients’ Attitudes and Expectations Towards the Health-Care System and the Consumption of Medicines

The purpose of this paper is to propose a general typology of patients’ attitudes and expectations towards the health-care system and medicines consumption. Four types of values expressed by patients are identified via a semiotic analysis of patients’ expectations. These value types are labelled functional, existential, critical, and hedonistic. Based on these values we then empirically identify four patient profiles. From a managerial point of view, this research provides a segmentation tool relevant for the health-care sector and enables managers in the health-care industry to identify communication strategies which are adapted to the different types of patients.

Citation:

Isabelle Chalamon, Benoit Heilbrunn, and Ines Chouk (2009) ,"Does the Patient Really Act Like a Supermarket Shopper? a Semiotic Typology of Patients’ Attitudes and Expectations Towards the Health-Care System and the Consumption of Medicines", in NA - Advances in Consumer Research Volume 36, eds. Ann L. McGill and Sharon Shavitt, Duluth, MN : Association for Consumer Research, Pages: 787-788.