Perceived risk-utility tradeoffs of medical technology: A visual mapping

The social acceptance of medical technology is crucial for the sustainability and effectiveness of healthcare systems, particularly in the context of demographic changes. Unlike most studies that focus on individual technologies, we measure the public perception across a range of medical technologies in a comprehensive study. We conducted an online survey with 193 participants from Germany and Bulgaria to assess perceived risk, utility, and overall attitudes (valence) toward 20 distinct medical technologies. This article presents a visual mapping of these technologies and investigates the individual and technology-related factors shaping these evaluations. Our findings suggest that perceived utility is the strongest predictor of overall attitude toward medical technology (β=0.886), with perceived risk playing a significant, albeit much smaller, role (β=-0.133). Together, these factors explain a substantial portion of the variance in overall attitudes (R^2=.959). Additionally, we found that individual differences, such as prior care experience and trust in physicians, significantly influence these perceptions. The article concludes with recommendations for effectively communicating the benefits and risks of medical technologies to the public, thereby enhancing their social acceptance and integration into healthcare systems.