Date of Award
1-1-2025
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
M.S. in Pharmaceutical Science
First Advisor
Erin Holmes
Second Advisor
Marie Barnard
Third Advisor
Alicia Bouldin
School
University of Mississippi
Relational Format
dissertation/thesis
Abstract
Background: College students are known to have more frequent use for over-the-counter (OTC) cold products. Choice overload can lead to an increased burden of responsibility and dissatisfaction with one’s decision. The act of delegating to a pharmacist can prevent OTC product misuse and potential for abuse. The objective was to examine the effect of OTC choice difficulty and pharmacist accessibility on college students’ likelihood to delegate pharmacists for choosing OTC products for the common cold.
Methodology: An experimental within-subjects survey design was utilized on a national convenience sample of undergraduate students aged 18 years and older through Qualtrics market research vendor. Pretests on the manipulation and ecological validity were implemented on a separate sample of eligible respondents. Data from the Decision Self-Efficacy (DSE) Scale, statements measuring perceived expertise and perceptions of a pharmacist’s ability to delegate, and information resource preference were collected in addition to participant demographics via an online survey. Along with descriptive statistics, a two-way repeated measures ANOVA was conducted to assess the main effects of choice difficulty and pharmacist accessibility on choice preference as well as to evaluate the interaction effect between choice difficulty and pharmacist accessibility.
Results: A total of 403 participants completed the revised survey following two pretests. Participants somewhat agreed to delegating to a pharmacist (mean = 5.12, SD = 1.72) when given a difficult choice and the pharmacist was not busy. There was a significant main effect for choice difficulty (F(1,402) = 5.64, p = 0.018, η2p = 0.014) and for pharmacist accessibility (F(1,402) = 93.62, p < 0.001, η2p = 0.189). The interaction effect was significant (F(1,402) = 5.27, p = 0.022, η2p = 0.013) where difficult choice yielded higher mean scores when the pharmacist was not busy (Mean Difference = -0.278, 95% Confidence Interval (CI) [ -0.445, -0.110], p = 0.001).
Conclusion: The effect of choice difficulty on choice preference is dependent on whether the pharmacist is accessible or not. Study findings contribute towards understanding the social interactions among undergraduate college students with pharmacists and can provide support for the development of public health interventions that cater to this generation.
Recommended Citation
Canedo, Joanne Elizabeth Mansalay, "Do College Students Delegate Over the Counter Product Choice to Pharmacists? A National Survey Experiment" (2025). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 3255.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/etd/3255