Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Jun 2:10:820786.
doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.820786. eCollection 2022.

Threat to Professional Autonomy and Physicians' Intention to Use Acupuncture: A Study From Malaysia

Aqil M Daher  1 , Siew Siew Ong  2 , Devanandhini Krisnan  2
Affiliations

Threat to Professional Autonomy and Physicians' Intention to Use Acupuncture: A Study From Malaysia

Aqil M Daher et al. Front Public Health. .

Abstract

Despite its popularity, registered medical practitioners (RMPs) are reluctant to use acupuncture in their practice. The aim of this study is to determine the impact of Threat to Professional Autonomy (TPA) on RMPs' intention to use acupuncture in Malaysia. A cross sectional study was conducted using an online survey form. The survey was distributed to 250 registered medical practitioners who are affiliated with the Malaysian Medical Association. The questionnaire followed a modified technology acceptance theoretical framework including the three main constructs of ease of use, usefulness and intention to use with addition of TPA as a predictor of physician intention. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was utilized to test the relationship between the 4 constructs. Measurement model, discriminant validity and path analysis statistics were presented. Two hundred and seventeen returned the completed questionnaire yielding a response rate of 86.8%. In the measurement model, all items within each construct were highly correlated. The minimum average variance extracted (AVE) was 0.741. All constructs achieved a minimum of 0.896 reliability estimates. Discriminant validity was ascertained with the findings that the square root of AVE is larger than the correlation between each two constructs. TPA has a significant negative impact on ease of use (p < 0.001) and perceived usefulness (p = 0.002). There was no significant direct effect of TPA on intention (p = 0.0561). Fit indices showed adequate fit. In conclusion, TPA affects the intention to use acupuncture indirectly through its negative effect on perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness of acupuncture.

Keywords: acupuncture; autonomy; intention; physician; professional.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Xu J, Yang Y. Traditional Chinese medicine in the Chinese health care system. Health Policy. (2009) 90:133–9. 10.1016/j.healthpol.2008.09.003 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Barnes PM, Bloom B, Nahin RL. Complementary and alternative medicine use among adults and children) United States, 2007 (2008). 10.1037/e623942009-001 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Yamashita H, Tsukayama H, Sugishita C. Popularity of complementary and alternative medicine in Japan: a telephone survey. Complement Ther Med. (2002) 10:84–93. 10.1054/ctim.2002.0519 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Fisher P, Van Haselen R, Hardy K, Berkovitz S, McCarney R. Effectiveness gaps: a new concept for evaluating health service and research needs applied to complementary and alternative medicine. J Altern Complement Med. (2004) 10:627–32. 10.1089/acm.2004.10.627 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Ernst E. Acupuncture—a critical analysis. J Intern Med. (2006) 259:125–37. 10.1111/j.1365-2796.2005.01584.x - DOI - PubMed

Publication types