Table 1.
Background characteristics of the study participants (N=419).
| Variables | Physicians (n=219) | Journalists (n=200) | |
| Age (years), mean (SD) | 38.86 (9.94) | 33.97 (9.24) | |
| Years of professional experience, mean (SD) | 12.68 (8.56) | 9.85 (8.19) | |
| Sex, n (%) | |||
|
|
Male | 159 (72.6) | 149 (74.5) |
|
|
Female | 59 (26.9) | 48 (24.0) |
|
|
Prefer not to say | 1 (0.5) | 3 (1.5) |
| Physicians’ professional title, n (%) | |||
|
|
Medical officer | 111 (50.7) | N/Aa |
|
|
Junior consultant | 12 (5.5) | N/A |
|
|
Consultant | 28 (12.8) | N/A |
|
|
Specialist | 68 (31.1) | N/A |
| Journalists’ professional title, n (%) | |||
|
|
Correspondent | N/A | 53 (26.5) |
|
|
Reporter | N/A | 97 (48.5) |
|
|
News editor | N/A | 42 (21.0) |
|
|
Others (eg, anchor, media manager) | N/A | 8 (4.0) |
| Current working place, n (%) | |||
|
|
Capital city (Dhaka) | 95 (43.4) | 123 (61.5) |
|
|
Other divisional city | 43 (19.6) | 24 (12.0) |
|
|
District | 56 (25.6) | 35 (17.5) |
|
|
Upazilab and Unionc | 25 (11.4) | 18 (9.0) |
aN/A: not applicable.
bAn administrative division in Bangladesh, functioning as a subunit of a district.
cThe smallest rural administrative and local government unit in Bangladesh.