Table 3.

Factors Affecting Patients’ Perceptions of Similarity to the Physician (N = 214 Patients)

	Perceived Personal Similarity		Perceived Ethnic Similarity
Factor	Estimate (SE)	P	Estimate (SE)	P
HS = high school; ref = reference population.
Doctor race=black (ref=white)	1.01 (3.16)	.94	2.63 (5.86)	.65
Doctor race=Asian (ref=white)	0.25 (3.17)	.75	−4.89 (5.83)	.40
Doctor age	0.04 (0.15)	.79	0.10 (0.28)	.72
Race discordant=black/Hispanic patient (ref=race concordant)	−3.48 (2.44)	.16	−31.56 (4.23)	.000
Race discordant=white patient (ref=race concordant)	−3.27 (2.87)	.26	−34.06 (4.99)	.000
Sexual concordance	1.46 (2.00)	.47	2.21 (3.56)	.54
Patient age	0.20 (0.07)	.005	0.26 (0.12)	.032
Patient sex (ref = female)	−0.89 (2.13)	.68	−4.39 (3.74)	.24
Patient education (<HS, HS, some college, college graduate)	1.98 (0.95)	.039	2.84 (1.65)	.085
Number of previous visits	−0.39 (0.83)	.64	1.73 (1.45)	.24
Physicians’ patient-centered communication	0.34 (0.13)	.008	−0.06 (0.22)	.78