Physician Perceptions of LLMs: Qualitative Analysis

The PLoS One protocol by Pokharel et al. (2026) PLoS One describes a qualitative study to document how primary care physicians perceive adopting LLMs, using semi-structured interviews and the Technology Adoption Behavior (TAB) framework.

• The study protocol was published on August 7, 2026 and lists key timeline dates: received July 18, 2025; accepted July 22, 2026, according to Pokharel et al., 2026.
• The authors plan purposive sampling with LLM-use strata defined as 50+ uses, 5–50 uses, and fewer than 5 uses, and recruitment is expected from August 1, 2025 to January 31, 2026, according to Pokharel et al., 2026.
• The protocol highlights a population context: the number of Canadians without a family physician rose from 4.5 million in 2019 to about 6.5 million in 2023, as cited in Pokharel et al., 2026.
• The study will combine deductive TAB-based coding with inductive theme generation, and the authors note that "summary of events in the everyday terms of those events" is the goal of their qualitative descriptive approach (Pokharel et al., 2026).

Pokharel et al., 2026 published a study protocol to explore primary care physician perceptions of LLM adoption using semi-structured interviews and the TAB theoretical framework.

According to Pokharel et al., 2026, the research team will purposively sample practicing family physicians in British Columbia with varying self-reported LLM experience (defined as 50+, 5–50, and <5 lifetime uses in clinical contexts).

According to Pokharel et al., 2026, interviews will be recorded, transcribed verbatim, deidentified, and analysed using both deductive codes drawn from the TAB framework and inductive codes developed from the data, with NVivo used to conduct the analysis.

According to Pokharel et al., 2026, the TAB framework integrates perceptions (perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness) with task-technology fit traditions to explain uptake, and the study team will write reflexive memos and hold multidisciplinary discussions to check interpretations.

The protocol signals that qualitative protocols can and should be theory-guided: Pokharel et al., 2026 position the TAB framework to produce transferable themes rather than purely descriptive lists.

According to Pokharel et al., 2026, using purposive stratification by prior LLM exposure (50+, 5–50, <5 uses) helps researchers capture both adopters and sceptics, which improves analytic generalizability.

According to Pokharel et al., 2026, combining deductive TAB codes with inductive coding and monthly team codebook reviews supports reflexivity and reduces bias in theme development.

Researchers planning LLM perception studies should predefine use strata, record contextual system pressures (for example, the 2019 to 2023 primary care access shift noted in Pokharel et al., 2026), and budget for iterative memoing and multidisciplinary adjudication.

The PLoS One protocol by Pokharel et al., 2026 provides a clear, theory-guided blueprint for studying primary care physicians' perceptions of LLM adoption and for producing policy-relevant themes.

Researchers can mirror the protocol's purposive strata, hybrid coding, and reflexivity practices while using AI-enabled workflows to shorten transcription-to-theme timelines and preserve analytic rigor.

If you plan to run semi-structured interviews on clinician attitudes, consider tools that support secure transcription, hierarchical codebooks, and cross-segment visualizations to match the protocol's aims.

To accelerate your own TAB-aligned qualitative project, Try Evidano for free.