Dental hygiene students and the developmentally disabled

Area of Science:

• Dental Education
• Developmental Disabilities Research
• Attitude Assessment

Background:

• Dental hygiene students require training on developmental disabilities.
• Understanding attitudes towards mental retardation is crucial for effective patient care.
• The impact of educational program timing on student attitudes is not well-established.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the attitudes of dental hygiene students towards mental retardation.
• To evaluate the effectiveness of a combined lecture and clinical site visit program.
• To determine if the sequence of lectures and site visits influences attitude changes.

Main Methods:

• Dental hygiene students attended lectures and a clinical rotation at a developmental center.
• The Personal Attribute Inventory was administered pre- and post-program.
• Attitudinal data were analyzed to assess changes related to program timing.

Main Results:

• No statistically significant changes in student attitudes towards mental retardation were observed.
• The timing of lectures relative to the clinical site visit did not significantly alter attitudes.
• The educational intervention did not produce measurable shifts in student perceptions.

Conclusions:

• A short-term educational program involving lectures and site visits did not significantly change dental hygiene students' attitudes.
• The sequencing of educational components (lectures vs. clinical experience) did not influence attitude modification.
• Further research may be needed to explore more effective strategies for improving attitudes in dental hygiene education.