Custom Made Versus Ready to Wear Treatments; Behavioral Propensities in Physician's Choices

57 Pages Posted: 28 Sep 2007 Last revised: 28 Sep 2022

See all articles by Richard G. Frank

Richard G. Frank

Harvard Medical School; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

Richard J. Zeckhauser

Harvard University - Harvard Kennedy School (HKS); National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

Date Written: September 2007

Abstract

To customize treatments to individual patients entails costs of coordination and cognition. Thus, providers sometimes choose treatments based on norms for broad classes of patients. We develop behavioral hypotheses explaining when and why doctors customize to the particular patient, and when instead they employ "ready-to-wear" treatments. Our empirical studies examining length of office visits and physician prescribing behavior find evidence of norm-following behavior. Some such behavior, from our studies and from the literature, proves sensible; but other behavior seems far from optimal.

Suggested Citation

Frank, Richard G. and Zeckhauser, Richard J., Custom Made Versus Ready to Wear Treatments; Behavioral Propensities in Physician's Choices (September 2007). NBER Working Paper No. w13445, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1017768

Richard G. Frank (Contact Author)

Harvard Medical School ( email )

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Richard J. Zeckhauser

Harvard University - Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) ( email )

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National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER) ( email )

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