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Personality profile of students entering dentistry, hygiene/therapy and dental nursing at one London dental institute
Author(s) -
Belsi A.,
Gallagher J. E.,
Asimakopoulou K.
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
european journal of dental education
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.583
H-Index - 41
eISSN - 1600-0579
pISSN - 1396-5883
DOI - 10.1111/j.1600-0579.2010.00642.x
Subject(s) - medicine , conscientiousness , personality , oral hygiene , dentistry , dental hygiene , big five personality traits , nursing , extraversion and introversion , psychology , family medicine , social psychology
King’s College London Dental Institute (KCLDI) is the largest school in the UK, training dental professionals: Dentists, Hygienists/Therapists and Dental Nurses. Although previous work has examined dental students, there is a dearth of studies on the personality profile of students of hygiene/therapy and dental nursing. Objective: To investigate the personality profile of students studying dentistry, hygiene/therapy and dental nursing at KCLDI, by programme, sex and ethnicity. Methods and materials: All entrants into dentistry, hygiene/therapy and dental nursing at KCLDI were invited to participate in the study. A self report questionnaire including the brief version of the Five‐Factor Model and personal details was administered to the 218 recruited students in groups and under supervised conditions. Results: One‐way ANOVA on data from 148 questionnaires revealed significant differences; the medical graduate entrants to dentistry appeared to have a more extraverted profile than hygiene/therapy entrants ( P < 0.04). The graduate entrants to dentistry were more open to experiences than the direct entrants ( P < 0.03) and the dental nursing trainees ( P < 0.03). The medical graduate entrants also appeared more open to experiences than the dental nursing trainees; the latter also appeared to have a more sensitive profile compared to the medical entry students ( P < 0.03). No differences were found between groups in agreeableness and conscientiousness. Conclusions: The findings suggest the presence of personality differences between entrants to dentistry, hygiene/therapy and dental nursing. The implications of these findings are discussed.