TY  - JOUR
AU  - Chan, David C, Jr
TI  - Informational Frictions and Practice Variation: Evidence from Physicians in Training
JF  - National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Series
VL  - No. 21855
PY  - 2016
Y2  - January 2016
DO  - 10.3386/w21855
UR  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w21855
L1  - http://www.nber.org/papers/w21855.pdf
N1  - Author contact info:
David C. Chan Jr
Center for Health Policy and
Center for Primary Care and Outcomes Research
117 Encina Commons
Stanford, CA 94305
Tel: 650/725-9582
Fax: 650/723-1919
E-Mail: david.c.chan@stanford.edu
AB  - Substantial practice variation across physicians for seemingly similar patients remains an unresolved puzzle. This paper studies physicians in training to explore the behavioral foundations of practice variation. A discontinuity in the formation of teams reveals a large contribution of relative experience in the size of practice variation. Among the same physician trainees, convergence towards a common practice differs by practice environment, with more convergence in specialist-driven services. Rich trainee characteristics and training histories, including the practice styles of prior supervising physicians, explain little if any variation. These findings suggest a major role for informational frictions in the origins of practice variation.
ER  -