Temperament as a predictor of behavior during initial dental examination in children

Temperament refers to children's behavioral style, or the manner in which they interact with their environment. Temperament has been quantified into nine temperament categories and five temperament constellations by Thomas and Chess. Temperament categories and constellations of children can be measured using one of several parental questionnaires, each of which focuses on age-appropriate behavior. For this study the Behavioral Style Questionnaire (BSQ) was administered to the parents of 50 healthy children (mean age 48.8 months) receiving initial dental examinations. The examinations were videotaped and The Ohio State Behavior Rating Scale (OSUBRS) was used to rate each child's behavior into one of four behavioral categories: 1) quiet; 2) crying only; 3) disruptive movement only; and 4) crying and disruptive movement. For data analysis the percentage duration of each behavioral category was calculated. Using one-way ANOVA, significant differences between constellations were found for quiet (P = 0.03) and combination behavior (P = 0.03). Using a stepwise linear regression, the temperament category of approach/withdrawal was found to predict the percentage of quiet (multiple R = 0.42357, R2 = 0.17941, and P = 0.002), crying (multiple R = 0.42124, R2 = 0.17744, and P = 0.002), and combination behaviors (multiple R = 0.30008, R2 = 0.09005, and P = 0.03). Additionally, significant regressions were found with temperament categories predicting behavioral categories depending on the child's age. The results of this pilot study suggest that the BSQ temperament constellations and categories appear to be modest predictors of a child's specific behaviors in the dental environment. Knowledge of a child's temperament may prepare the clinician to predict patient behaviors in the dental environment.