Why does signing a contract make patients more committed to treatment? Because writing changes behavior. There is a real psychology here: people live up to what they put in writing in a way they never live up to a verbal nod across the operatory. When a patient signs a document agreeing to the fees and the plan, they are no longer just thinking about treatment, they have publicly committed to it. That signature fills in the blanks on both sides, what you owe them and what they owe you, so nobody drifts into vague assumptions. It also quietly raises the stakes [...]