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Updated: Jul 8, 2026

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Published on: March 29, 2018

Cognitive vulnerability and dental fear.

Jason M Armfield1, Gary D Slade, A John Spencer

  • 1Australian Research Centre for Population Oral Health, School of Dentistry, University of Adelaide, South Australia, Australia. jason.armfield@adelaide.edu.au

BMC Oral Health
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Summary

Dental fear is linked to viewing dental visits as uncontrollable and dangerous. Unpredictability also plays a role, though less significantly. These findings support the Cognitive Vulnerability Model in understanding dental anxiety.

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Using the Threat Probability Task to Assess Anxiety and Fear During Uncertain and Certain Threat
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Micro-dissection of Enamel Organ from Mandibular Incisor of Rats Exposed to Environmental Toxicants
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Using the Threat Probability Task to Assess Anxiety and Fear During Uncertain and Certain Threat
11:18

Using the Threat Probability Task to Assess Anxiety and Fear During Uncertain and Certain Threat

Published on: September 12, 2014

Area of Science:

  • Psychology
  • Dental Anxiety Research

Background:

  • The Cognitive Vulnerability Model posits that situational perceptions critically influence fear responses.
  • This model, applicable to various fears, has not been specifically investigated in the context of dental fear.
  • Understanding the psychological underpinnings of dental fear is crucial for effective intervention strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between dental fear and perceptions of dental visits as uncontrollable, unpredictable, and dangerous.
  • To test the applicability of the Cognitive Vulnerability Model to dental fear etiology.
  • To identify key cognitive factors contributing to high dental fear prevalence.

Main Methods:

  • A nationally representative sample of 3937 Australians (aged 15+) participated in a telephone interview survey.
  • Participants reported their level of dental fear.
  • A subset completed a questionnaire assessing perceptions of uncontrollability, unpredictability, and dangerousness related to dental visits.

Main Results:

  • All three vulnerability-related perceptions (uncontrollability, unpredictability, dangerousness) showed a strong association with high dental fear.
  • Logistic regression revealed that perceptions of uncontrollability and dangerousness were significantly associated with high dental fear, even after controlling for age and sex.
  • Perceptions of unpredictability did not maintain a statistically significant independent association with dental fear when all variables were controlled.

Conclusions:

  • The findings largely support the Cognitive Vulnerability Model's relevance to dental fear, highlighting the strong link between fear and perceptions of uncontrollability, unpredictability, and dangerousness.
  • While all three factors showed a bivariate relationship, uncontrollability and dangerousness emerged as more robust independent predictors of dental fear.
  • Future research should employ more comprehensive measures of vulnerability perceptions to further elucidate the cognitive factors in dental fear.