A Comparison of Self and Physicians' Health Ratings in an Older Population

A study of the relationships between self and physicians' health ratings, secured as responses to a five-point scale which were subsequently dichotomized as "favorable" or "unfavorable," yielded the following results: (1) A positive, but weak, relationship between the two sets of ratings; (2) Self-ratings tended to be lower than physicians' ratings; (3) Self-ratings were more closely related to selected attitudinal and behavioral items than were physicians' ratings. Although the design and instruments were different, in general the findings tend to support those from a similar study by Streib, Suchman, and Phillips.