Psychological and behavioral factors associated with dental anxiety in children

Journal of Behavioral MedicinePublished 1 April 1986

David F. Brown, Clive Wright, Nancy E. McMurray

DOI10.1007/bf00848479

Source URL

Citations61

SJR quartileQ1

SJR score1.03

SNIP0.93

TL;DR

The results indicate that dental anxiety may reflect a more general class of anxiety behaviors, rather than fears learned in response to a specific situation.

Abstract

This study of the relationship between dental anxiety and psychological and behavioral variables suggests that the most important factor in explaining the variance in children's perceived dental anxiety is their level of general anxiety. The negative relationship found among the frequency of dental visits, deciduous diseased, missing, and filled teeth (dmft), and dental anxiety implies that dental anxiety does not develop through simple exposure to dental settings. Perceived locus of control and perceived health vulnerability did not appear to be associated in any significant way with dental anxiety. The results indicate that dental anxiety may reflect a more general class of anxiety behaviors, rather than fears learned in response to a specific situation.

Keywords

PsychologyMedicineDentistry

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