The effect of knowledge of the desired outcome on dental motor performance

Knowledge of the desired outcome of a series of movements is a critical component of motor performance, since it is used to develop the appropriate motor program and to form a basis for understanding terminal extrinsic feedback and formulating subjective reinforcement. In dentistry, information about the desired outcome is almost always disseminated in a lecture and laboratory manual, and a demonstration often is provided. However, mastery by students usually is not given the importance it deserves. The purpose of this study was to evaluate an instructional strategy designed to increase the students' knowledge of the desired outcome by determining whether such knowledge had an effect on dental motor performance. Two intact groups of first-year dental students were randomly assigned to a control or experimental treatment. The control treatment included conventional written and oral descriptions of criteria and methods for completing the occlusal (n = 93) and mesio-occlusal (n = 99) amalgam preparations. The experimental treatment directed the students' attention to critical features of tooth anatomy, and the preparation and methods for assessing performance. Results indicated statistically significant differences (p less than .05) in favor of the experimental group for both performance and degree of agreement with the instructor's evaluation of the mesio-occlusal amalgam only.