The critical incident technique and pediatric dentistry: a worked example

Area of Science:

• Dental Education
• Pediatric Dentistry
• Qualitative Research

Background:

• Effective preparation of dental graduates for pediatric patient care is crucial for community health.
• Understanding dental students' clinical experiences is key to improving educational strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore dental students' experiences in pediatric dentistry using qualitative methods.
• To identify key factors influencing student performance and learning in pediatric dental clinics.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative investigation utilizing the critical incident technique (CIT).
• Conducted 103 recorded interviews with 60 dental students at a southwestern dental school.
• Analyzed 150 positive and 134 negative reported experiences.

Main Results:

• Identified four primary factors influencing student experiences: instructor, patient, learning process, and learning environment.
• Highlighted the previously unaddressed contribution of patient interactions to dental education.
• CIT provided rich data on student experiences in pediatric dentistry.

Conclusions:

• The critical incident technique is effective for gathering detailed insights into dental education.
• Findings offer valuable data for enhancing pediatric dentistry curricula and improving student preparedness.
• Future research can leverage CIT to explore other facets of dental training.