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Good question. There are some answers here:

Denig P, Haaijer-Ruskamp FM, Zijsling DH. How physicians choose drugs. Soc Sci Med. 1988;27(12):1381–1386

Abstract
A drug choice model which includes the physician's attitudes, norms and personal experiences with drugs, was tested. One hundred and sixty-nine physicians were asked to estimate the model's components for the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and of renal colic. Given three drugs for both indications, the physicians gave their expectancies about the treatment outcomes, professional acceptability, patient demand and their personal experiences with the drugs. They also stated the value they assign to each of these components when choosing a drug for IBS and for renal colic. The influence of patient demand on the choice of a specific drug appeared to be negligible. The combined effect of the other three elements of the model predicted the stated drug of first choice correctly in 74% (for IBS) and 78% (for renal colic) of the cases, but further analysis showed that only the drug choices for renal colic were as reasoned as the model assumed. Expectancies and values about treatment outcomes determined the drug choice only in part. For choosing a drug for renal colic, the professional environment was more important. Moreover it was found that drug preferences were more related to expectancies about efficacy than to expectancies about side effects for both disorders. The findings can be useful when trying to change prescribing behaviour. Only a limited effect can be expected from the provision of technical drug information. Especially information about costs is unlikely to change prescribing easily, unless values and norms are changed as well. The importance of the professional environment implies that educational programmes in groups might be more effective than individual approaches.

Also:
Prescribing new drugs: qualitative study of influences on consultants and general practitioners
Miren I Jones,
Sheila M Greenfield,
Colin P Bradley
BMJ 2001;323:378 doi:10.1136/bmj.323.7309.378 (Published 18 August 2001)

Prescribing behaviour in clinical practice: patients' expectations and doctors' perceptions of patients' expectations—a questionnaire study
Jill Cockburn,
Sabrina Pit
BMJ 1997;315:520-523 (Published 30 August 1997)

Uncomfortable prescribing decisions: a critical incident study.
C. P. Bradley
BMJ 1992;304:294-296 doi:10.1136/bmj.304.6822.294 (Published 1 February 1992)


Best wishes
Trish

Dr Trish Groves
Deputy editor, BMJ
and Editor-in-chief, BMJ Open

+44 207 383 6018
bmj.com - the open access journal
http://bmjopen.bmj.com
BMJ Group: http://group.bmj.com



From:        Michael Power <[log in to unmask]>
To:        [log in to unmask]
Date:        14/12/2010 10:40
Subject:        why do doctors prescribe what they prescribe?
Sent by:        "Evidence based health (EBH)" <[log in to unmask]>




Anyone want to help Ben Goldacre who asks  on his (secondary) blog:

"Okay cleverclogs: why do doctors prescribe what they prescribe?"

"It feels to me like I don't know much about one very important question in medicine: how do doctors make treatment decisions? I don't mean in the complex tricky cases - I can imagine the endless drudgery of research into that. I mean, in the routine banal situations, where they have to choose a statin, or an antidepressant, and there's more than one on the formulary. In short, my question is this: in situations like those, why do individual doctors prescribe what they prescribe? Is it colleagues, papers, adverts, habit, guidelines, lucky dice?"

"And most importantly, is there any good quantitative evidence on this (after the classic "Medical Innovation" paper on social contagion that is, which is from, like, a million years ago)?  I mean, when people are in medical school, it's a bit more transparent, but once we're out in the world. Sheesh. How do doctors find out about stuff? And what affects them the most?"

http://bengoldacre.posterous.com/okay-cleverclogs-why-do-doctors-prescribe-wha

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