Provider identity and patient demand

Last registered on July 06, 2026
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Provider identity and patient demand
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0018944
Initial registration date
July 01, 2026

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
July 06, 2026, 7:39 AM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

Country
South Africa
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Nicholas Stacey
Affiliation
University College London
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Mylene Lagarde
PI Affiliation
LSE
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PI Name
Irene Papanicolas
PI Affiliation
Brown University
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Additional Trial Information

Status
Completed
Start date
2021-10-25
End date
2021-11-05
Keywords
Health, Labor
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
I11, I14, J71
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial is based on or builds upon one or more prior RCTs.
Abstract
This study investigates patients' preferences over their medical providers' characteristics, and in particular their preference for providers of the same race. We analyse data from one arm of a previously fielded survey experiment (AEARCTR-0008353) on the sensitivity of demand to choice effort. In that arm, participants rated a series of hypothetical provider profiles with randomly assigned traits; we used these ratings to build each participant a personalised ranking of real providers with whom they could redeem a consultation voucher they stood a chance of winning for taking part. Because the ratings determined which real providers would be recommended, they were consequential and respondents are incentivized to reveal genuine preferences over provider characteristics. For each profile, participants rated not only their interest in consulting the provider but also how good they expected the provider's care to be. This lets us separate two explanations for any same-race preference: a direct taste for a provider of one's own race, and a belief that same-race providers deliver better care.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Lagarde, Mylene , Irene Papanicolas and Nicholas Stacey. 2026. "Provider identity and patient demand." AEA RCT Registry. July 06. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.18944-1.0
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Participants are presented with a series of provider profiles with randomly assigned characteristics including race, where provider race is implicitly signaled by name. We investigate participants’ ratings of own-race provider profiles vs other-race provider profiles.
Intervention (Hidden)
Intervention Start Date
2021-10-25
Intervention End Date
2021-11-05

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Primary outcome is interest in seeking a consultation with the provider: "On a scale of 1 to 10 (where '1' is extremely unlikely and '10' is extremely likely), tell us how likely you would be to choose this doctor for a virtual consultation?"
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary outcome is perceived quality of provider's care: "On a scale of 1 to 10 (where '1' is extremely unlikely and '10' is extremely likely), tell us how likely you think this doctor would be able to meet the healthcare needs of someone like you?"
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
Each participant evaluated a series of hypothetical general-practitioner profiles (ten per participant). Every profile displayed the same set of attributes, whose values were independently randomised across profiles and participants: the provider's name (which signalled the provider's race and gender implicitly, through distinctive names rather than explicit labels), gender, region of practice, years of experience, and a patient-satisfaction rating; medical qualification was held constant.
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
Randomization by computer.
Randomization Unit
Individual-profile level.
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
N=302
Sample size: planned number of observations
N=302
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
N=302
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Study has received IRB approval. Details not available.
IRB Approval Date
Details not available
IRB Approval Number
Details not available
Analysis Plan

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

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Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
No
Data Collection Complete
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials