Publications by authors named "Umar Taj"

Background: Medical nonadherence is a significant problem associated with worse clinical outcomes, higher downstream rehospitalization rates, and a higher use of resources. To improve medication adherence, it is vital for researchers and practitioners to have a solid theoretical understanding of what interventions are likely to work. To achieve this understanding, we propose that researchers should focus on creating small-scale laboratory analogs to the larger real-world setting and determine what interventions, such as nudges or incentives, work to change behavior in the laboratory.

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Behavioral economics and its applied branch "nudging" can improve individual choices in various health care settings. However, there is a paucity of research using nudges to improve regular testing for HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs). The study examined which reminder system and message type men who have sex with men (MSM) preferred to remind them to undergo regular 3-monthly HIV and STI testing.

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When developing a behavioral intervention, formative research should be conducted to determine which behavioral barriers and facilitators to target. This is often done using qualitative interviews, but quantitative surveys may also be used. The current study examines the consequences of applying descriptive (rank order and -tests) versus predictive (regression) quantitative analyses on intervention development, specifically for increasing antibiotic course completion.

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