Provider communication, personality, and medication adherence

What is it about?

Lampert and colleagues set out to examine the relationship between provider communication about prescriptions and medication adherence, and perceived barriers, among a sample of emerging adults. Results revealed provider communication was positively associated with medication adherence and negatively associated with adherence barriers. Further, personality traits moderated the relationship between provider communication and adherence outcomes. Specifically, emerging adults with lower levels, or mean levels, of extraversion benefited more from provider communication about the medication than those reporting higher levels of extraversion. Lastly, a main effect of conscientiousness was observed such that higher levels of conscientiousness were associated with greater medication adherence.

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Photo by Elsa Olofsson on Unsplash

Photo by Elsa Olofsson on Unsplash

Why is it important?

This study expands and replicates what is known in adult adherence literature to emerging adult samples. Specifically, the adult literature demonstrates strong relationships between both personality traits and provider communication as important to adherence. Additionally, as lower rates of adherence have been documented among emerging adults as compared to younger age groups, attention to the emerging adult population is important as health behavior patterns present in this developmental period often persist into adulthood. Lastly, this study utilized a large sample (N = 399) of healthy individuals and those with chronic health conditions. Participants were on a variety of medications, and this diversity suggests provider communication is a salient influence for a broad range of emerging adults.