ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Public Health
Sec. Digital Public Health
Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2025.1637270
This article is part of the Research TopicAdvancements and Challenges in AI-Driven Healthcare InnovationView all articles
Factors Influencing the Acceptance of Medical AI Chat Assistants Among Healthcare Professionals and Patients: A Survey-Based Study in China
Provisionally accepted
- Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications (BUPT), Beijing, China
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Medical AI chat assistants are rapidly gaining attention as a new channel for health consultat ions between doctors and patients. This study investigates the factors that shape their accepta nce among both groups. Using quota sampling, we conducted a nationwide online survey in China from March 10 to April 28, 2024, and obtained 500 valid responses. We extended the UTAUT model to include four antecedents-performance expectancy, perceived cost, digital access, and digital competence-and examined how patients' socioeconomic status, age, and c onsultation frequency relate to actual use. Structural-equation modelling shows: (1) all four a ntecedents positively predict intention to use; (2) patient age, consultation frequency and inte ntion positively predict actual use; (3) socioeconomic status is unrelated to actual use. This s tudy contributes to both theoretical and practical knowledge, as it validates the extended UT AUT model in digital health and highlights how cultural context moderates technology accept ance. Additionally, it provides evidence for age-friendly AI design, digital literacy training po licies, and the equitable allocation of medical resources.
Keywords: medical, AI Chat Assistant, UTAUT model, artificial intelligence, digital competence
Received: 29 May 2025; Accepted: 11 Aug 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Lanshan, Yang and Fang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Jingyi Yang, Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications (BUPT), Beijing, China
Gege Fang, Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications (BUPT), Beijing, China
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