Table 1.

Overview of categories of identified cultural determinants

Cultural determinant	Description	References
Patient related determinants
Illness perception/behaviour and health-seeking behaviour	Attitudes, knowledge and beliefs towards URTI symptoms (serious or self-limiting, belief in the healing power of the body, fear of complications), initial coping strategies, threshold for consulting a GP, in particular for self-limiting diseases.	[18, 21, 24, 25, 27]
Individual experience	Previous experience of similar episodes.	[27]
Antibiotic awareness	Attitudes, knowledge, beliefs and perceptions towards antibiotics (their effectiveness in speeding recovery and preventing complications, their adverse effects, antibiotic resistance).	[13, 19, 21, 23, 25–27]
Drug perception	Perception towards antibiotics and symptomatic medication: scepticism towards medications and fear of toxicity, or considered as accelerators of the healing process with fear of complications if no medicines were used.	[24, 27]
Labelling of diagnosis	Perception of what is considered as a real symptom and use of labels.	[27]
Work ethos	Behaviour towards work: continue working in spite of illness or stop working to let the body recover and avoid transmitting infection to others.	[13, 27, 28]
Practitioner perception	Perception of their practitioner’s competence, trust in the practitioner.	[12, 19, 20]
Practitioner related determinants
RTI management	Attitudes towards RTI, management, including decision-making.	[12, 24, 28]
Initial training	Orientation of initial medical training (hospital-centred or outpatient-centred).	[28]
Antibiotic awareness	Attitudes towards and beliefs concerning antibiotics.	[12, 24]
Legal complaints	Antibiotic prescription to avoid legal complaints.	[28]
Practice context	Perceived patients’ expectations, patient education strategies, prescription patterns.	[12, 28]