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
. 2024 Jun 17;10(12):e33136.
doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e33136. eCollection 2024 Jun 30.

Scientific epistemology beliefs and acceptance of Traditional Chinese Medicine: A multigroup analysis based on the UTAUT model in Southern China

Minrui Zhang  1   2   3 , Aiyuan Cai  2   3 , Kexin Jin  4 , Jiaying Huang  5 , Dan Li  1   3 , Meihui He  6 , Ruixiang Gao  6
Affiliations

Scientific epistemology beliefs and acceptance of Traditional Chinese Medicine: A multigroup analysis based on the UTAUT model in Southern China

Minrui Zhang et al. Heliyon. .

Abstract

Purpose: This study for the first time delves into the intricate relationship between scientific literacy and the acceptance of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) by employing a multigroup path analysis based on the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model. We adopted Scientific Epistemology Belief (SEB) as an indicator for measuring scientific literacy due to its comprehensive reflection of individuals' understanding of scientific knowledge and knowing. In assessing TCM acceptance, we focused on Chinese parents' receptivity towards pediatric TCM, as it offers a more genuine representation of actual inclinations.

Methods: A convenience sample of 1016 Chinese parents in Southern China was assessed using online Likert-scale questionnaires on SEB and UTAUT determinants (including performance expectancy, social influence, risk awareness, and facilitating conditions). A K-means cluster analysis was employed to discern distinct SEB profiles, followed by a multigroup path analysis to ascertain UTAUT model variations across these profiles.

Results: Five SEB profiles were identified, namely, intermediate, absolutistic, multiplistic, sophisticated, and evidence-based. Evidence-based believers manifested the highest pediatric TCM acceptance, albeit with elements of blind faith, while multiplistic skeptics, prone to questioning everything, displayed the least acceptance. The absolutistic, intermediate, and sophisticated demonstrated moderate TCM acceptance levels, with the intermediate profile outscoring both absolutistic and sophisticated. These findings highlight that individuals with high scientific literacy do not blindly endorse TCM, nor do those with limited scientific understanding fully appreciate TCM's merits.

Conclusion: SEB significantly moderates TCM acceptance factors in the UTAUT model, indicating that extremes in scientific knowledge spectrum result in less balanced TCM perspectives. Our findings pave the way for novel insights into harmonizing modern and traditional medical practices.

Keywords: Multigroup path analysis; Pediatric TCM; Scientific literacy; Unified theory of acceptance and use of technology.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
The UTAUT model of TCM. PE = performance expectancy, SI = social influence, RA = risk awareness, FC = facilitating condition, UI = usage intention, UB = usage behavior.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Membership of SEB profiles.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Results of multigroup path analysis. *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001. PE = performance expectancy, SI = social influence, RA = risk awareness, FC = facilitating condition, UI = usage intention, UB = usage behavior. Intercorrelations between the four exogenous variables were omitted for clarity.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Huang K., Zhang P., Zhang Z., Youn J.Y., Wang C., Zhang H., Cai H. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) in the treatment of COVID-19 and other viral infections: efficacies and mechanisms. Pharmacol. Ther. 2021;225 doi: 10.1016/j.pharmthera.2021.107843. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Ma Y., Zhou K., Fan J., Sun S. Traditional Chinese medicine: potential approaches from modern dynamical complexity theories. Front. Med. 2016;10(1):28–32. doi: 10.1007/s11684-016-0434-2. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Publicity Department of the People's Republic of China . Press conference of the joint prevention and control mechanism of state council; 2020, February 17. http://www.nhc.gov.cn/xcs/fkdt/202002/f12a62d10c2a48c6895cedf2faea6e1f.s... Retreved September 23,2023 from.
    1. Liu Y., Gao R., Lan X., Zhou X., Huang S., Wu D., Li Q., Zhou Y., Luo N., Zuo H., Mo L. A comparison of Chinese and European–American university students' virtue and mind learning beliefs and academic achievement in global cultural exchange. Sustainability. 2022;14(10):5788. doi: 10.3390/su14105788. - DOI
    1. Chan E., Tan M., Xin J., Sudarsanam S., Johnson D.E. Interactions between traditional Chinese medicines and Western therapeutics. Curr. Opin. Drug Discov. Dev. 2010;13(1):50–65. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources