The influence of practitioner nationality, experience, and sex in shaping patient preferences for dentists

The present study examined patient preference for dentists as a function of the latter's demographics and experience. A sample of 161 British participants completed a questionnaire in which they were asked to rate eight dentists differentiated by nationality (British vs. Eastern European), sex (male vs. female), and experience (great vs. moderate). A mixed-design analysis of variance showed that there were main effects of dentist nationality (British preferred over Eastern European), sex (female over male), and experience (great over moderate). There were also a number of significant two- and three-way interactions, although the effect sizes of these interactions were relatively small. Participant sex generally did not have an impact on preferences. These results are discussed in relation to the extant literature on patient preferences for different types of health care practitioners.