A Study of Hospital Choice on the basis of Consumption Values Theory

Lee, Sun Hee

Abstract

This research is based on the Consumption Values theory proposed by Sheth(1991). The purpose of this research is finding the factors related to the process of hospital choice. The expectation of six hospital outpatients 600 was analyzed by six consumption values categories: functional values, social values, emotional value, rarity value, situational values, health related values. The main results of this research is as following; 1. In the result of factor analysis 22 consumption value factors which affect the hospital preference were extracted; kindness/clearness, service speed, comfortabness of space, technical competence in functional values, high income/active social life, low income/blue calar, unmarried/man, middle aged/big family, woman/married, introvert in social values, high-class, comfortableness, reliability in emotional value, newness, classiness in rarity value, social relationship, close to residence, social reputation in situational values, priority on health, health behavior, active sense of value on health in health related values. 2. The difference of consumption values among hospital types were analyzed. The critical factors in reference for corporate hospitals newly established were kindness/ clearness, service speed, convenience, classiness, comfortableness, and newness. University hospitals were preferred by the factors of reliability, and social reputation. In general hospital, convenience and close to residence were critical factor. 3. In logistic regression, age, marital status, education level and income as sociodemographic variables were significaltly related to general hospital choice. Also service speed and close to residence were positively and high income/active social life and high class value were negatively related to general hospital choice. On university hospital choice, age and marital status, education show posive relationship whereas income showing negative relationship. Kindness/clearness, service speed, comfortableness of space, unmarried/man, comfortable feeling, newness and close to residence showed negative relationship with university hospital selection whereas technical competence, reliability in emotional value, classiness in rarity value, social relationship in functional values showed positive relationship. Lastly kindness/clearness, comfortableness of space, high income/active social life, unmarried/man, high-class, comfortableness and newness were positively related to corporate hospitals newly established choice in contast to negative relationship in reliability in emotional value and classiness. In summary, we found that hospital user also choose to hospital in base of various consumption value. Further studis to investigate the hospital consumer behavior will be needed.