Bi/Polar personality patterns of senior dental students

The Bi/Polar Inventory of Core Strengths was administered to two senior dental classes. Students preferred thinking (58.3 percent) over risking (41.7 percent), practical thinking (78.7 percent) over theoretical thinking (21.3 percent), and independent risking (59.1 percent) over dependent risking (40.9 percent). Compared to the general population, dental students were more thinking and practical, but nearly identical in independence-dependence. Pattern II (thinking-practical-independent) was the most common student pattern (25.2 percent) and Pattern VI (risking-theoretical-dependent) was the least common (3.9 percent). Results suggest a dominance of certain personality styles in dental students.